The Last Act (1955)

• 72%
• 1955
• Drama
• War
• G.W. Pabst
• Albin Skoda
• Oskar Werner
• Lotte Tobisch

This war drama film is a German-Austrian project in black-and-white and released in 1955. It was produced by the Austrian film company Cosmopol-Film GmbH. The film depicts the last days of the war, especially the last ten days in Hitler's life and the overall atmosphere in his Berlin bunker in April 1945. The film starts with young German Army captain Wüst making his way among the rubble of Berlin's buildings toward Hitler's bunker. Out of a group of four men, only captain Wüst and a sergeant make it alive into the bunker. They are on a desperate mission to see Hitler and request urgent reinforcements for their commander, General Busse, who's in charge of the northern Kurland Army defending the Wriezen area. Despite several attempts by captain Wüst to personally see Hitler, he is stonewalled by the commanding generals. For the next ten days, Wüst will remain in Hitler's bunker, as a liaison officer between Hitler's headquarters and general Busse. He will witness the final days of the Fuhrer and the desperation of his generals to stave off defeat by any cost. He will finally see Hitler and witness his madness about the outcome of the war, about his belief in a miracle that would save Germany from defeat and about Hitler's conviction that German armies are still intact and available to relieve the surrounded Berlin from the Soviet pressure. Viewers will have the opportunity to see, with a high degree of realism, what it was like to be in Hitler's presence, in his battered bunker, surrounded by the Soviet Red Army which was only a few blocks away. Those watching this war drama will also have a chance to see some historical characters interact in Hitler's presence. Among them, German military leaders, such as Generals Burgdorf, Krebs, Jodl, Keitel and Greim are depicted. Political leaders such as Martin Bormann, Joseph Goebbels, Hermann Göring, Heinrich Himmler and Albert Speer also make an appearance. Eva Braun and Magda Goebbels are shown in certain scenes where Hitler's marriage ceremony takes place. But the most important characters of this anti-war film are the ordinary German people, young and old, who are among the victims of Hitler's dream of 'A 1000 year Reich'.