Hangmen Also Die!

Rating:
Summary: No surrender
Review: I love war movies made during the war they portray. They're usually unabashed propaganda, bold strokes painted with primary colors. The stories are the ones that matter today, and will sometimes be buried by history. The bad guys are ruthless, invincible, menacing without the benefit of hindsight. It's like Red Riding Hood meeting the wolf.
Fritz Lang's 1943 HANGMEN ALSO DIE is one such film. Based on a true story, it's a moving tale set in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia. The Reichprotektor Heydrich has been assassinated and the Gestapo is conducting a massive investigation to apprehend the killer.
Frustrated in their search, and by the Czech resistance, the Gestapo rounds up 400 hostages and begin executing them at regular intervals until the assassin in apprehended. Brian Donlevy plays the killer, Dr. Franticek Svoboda, Anna Lee the young woman who inadvertently (at first) throws the authorities off his trail, and Walter Brennan plays Prof. Stephen Novotny, Anna Lee's father and one of the four hundred hostages.
The Nazis in HANGMEN ALSO DIE were played by Jewish actors, refugees from a hostile Europe. Whether brooding over a pimple on the cheek, annoyingly cracking knuckles while tormenting a poor old vegetable monger, or cavorting with naughty girls, Lang's Gestapo agents are animated and interesting. The Czechs, on the other hand, are all played by American actors and all, even Brennan, give stiff, dull, and wooden performances. Donlevy especially gives some of the flattest line readings of his career.
It's tempting to blame the actors, but in Lotte Eisner's admiring biography, Fritz Lang, she quotes an old interview in which Lang discussed the movie. "We didn't want," Lang said, "analyses of characters, we simply schematized into those who resist and those who organize, those who aspire to freedom but have not yet found or chosen the means of action, and finally the collaborators, the genuine enemy of the people....
"I don't think it is possible in such a plot to go far into the psychological development because the psychology does not change." In other words Lang got the performances he wanted, without any emotional window dressing. Well, he's a genius, I'm not, but Lordy it would have been nice if his heroes had had a little more panache, a little more brio.
I had a few problems with this film. The plot pivots on a shaky point or two - the unsmeared lipstick clue, two unarmed men bearing down on a man with a gun without being shot - that seem a little manufactured and more than a little implausible. Still, HANGMEN ALSO DIE was stylish and an interesting take on a little talked about, at least in America, incident in World War II.



Rating:
Summary: The Complexities of Politics
Review: HANGMEN ALSO DIE is probably most infamous as the film for which Bertolt Brecht did *not* receive screenplay credit. In a more than usually petty bout of Hollywood parochialism, the credit was given to his American collaborator (who shall remain nameless here), despite the testimony of director Fritz Lang that Brecht was responsible for every important aspect of the script. Imagine Elizabeth I's chamberlain saying, "Who is this Shakespeare guy, anyway? Let's say Court Favorite wrote it. He can use the credit." and you'll get a sense of the idiocy of this decision. (Lotte Eisner's FRITZ LANG describes these events with effective concision.)

It is not to deny the tremendous contributions of Lang, cinematographer James Wong Howe and a troupe of first rate character actors to suggest that everything that distinguishes HANGMEN results from Brecht's participation. In lesser hands, the events surrounding the assassination of Heydrich might make an entertaining political melodrama. The formula of stalwart, virtuous victims triumphing over a brutal tyranny rarely fails, particularly with American audiences, eager to re-affirm the democratic mythos repeatedly and uncritically.

Such a film might make more effective propaganda, something like Warner Bros.'s CONFESSIONS OF A NAZI SPY. As such, it wouldn't warrant much more than a footnote in Hollywood history. Brecht's contribution comes from his unequaled sense of the contradictions and ironies of history and power. A victim of persecution from both the Nazis and the House Un-American Activities Committee, he had the political sophistication not to make the Germans and their collaborators in this film larger-than-life Evils, but obviously human creatures with more than a shade of appeal.

The Czechs, on the other hand, are not so much virtuous as wooden and bloodless. Their numerous, long speeches about freedom and humanity are unconvincing and platitudinous. There is, in true Brechtian fashion, no effort to make us "identify" with them, to give us goose bumps of sympathy with the high ideals. Quite the contrary, the film unflinchingly faces the partisans' complicity in the bloody events resulting from the assassination. Events unwind with clockwork precision, deadlier and darker with each step as *both* sides demand ever greater sacrifice from ordinary people.

Precisely because it does not shy away from the complexities of the situation, HANGMEN makes a much stronger statement in favor of political responsibility than a simple melodrama could. For the Germans can be somewhat sympathetic and the Czechs unappealing, and the latter can *still* be seen as ultimately right. Such a level of sophistication is rare in film of any kind. That it comes from Hollywood must be attributed to the presence of an unusually gifted set of émigré talent worthy of the theme. If HANGMEN ALSO DIE is not for everyone, it is definitely for anyone who responds to those rare instancs when a film treats us as intelligent adults.

Rating:
Summary: Solid Anti-Nazi Propaganda From Fritz Lang
Review: If you like political thrillers, first-rate war propaganda films, idealism that's not too melodramatic and Fritz Lang, you owe yourself a look at Hangmen Also Die. It was made just after the real-life assassination of the Nazi "protector" of Czechoslovakia, Reinhard Heydrich. Lang, a Nazi refugee, got together with Bertold Brecht to fashion a story of the killing that would bring greater awareness of Nazi oppression. This film is very efficient at doing that.

In the movie, Heydrich is shot by Dr. Franticek Svoboda (Brian Donlevy) in a plan involving a number of members of the Czech resistance. He escapes thanks to a young woman, Natasha Novotny (Anna Lee), who brings him into her house. He receives the protection of her father, Professor Novotny (Walter Brennan). A city-wide manhunt begins, ruthlessly conducted by the Nazis, led by a Gestapo officer, Alois Gruber (Alexander Granach). Dozens of hostages are taken, and are systematically shot in small groups to force someone to come forward and identify Svoboda. No one does, and the remaining resistance fighters -- average people who have everyday jobs as a cleaning lady, a butler, a taxi driver, a waiter -- develop a scheme to put the blame on an unctuous, scheming collaborator, Emil Czaka (Gene Lockhart). Czaka had pretended to be sympathetic to the resistance but was in the pay of the Gestapo. Eventually the crime is pinned on a groveling Czaka, who is executed by the Gestapo. Later Berlin tells the local Nazis that Czaka couldn't have done it, but to protect the reputation of the local German heirarchy they say that the case must be closed.

Donlevy does a fine job as a Czech surgeon who becomes Heydrich's assassin. Brennan also is very good as a quiet professor who finds great strength as he faces probable execution. And Alexander Granach as Gruber is fascinating, if always threatening to go over the top into caricature. This is probably just how Lang wanted the Nazis portrayed. Hans von Twardowsky who plays Reinhard Heydrich gives an absolutely over-the-top protrayal of Heydrich as a vicious, effeminate creep. Another repellant Nazi keeps picking at a sore on his face. Lang spares none of them.

This is a very well-developed story, with incident after incident building tension. There is no humor to speak of, but much satisfaction in seeing how Svoboda is protected, how Czaka is framed and how Gruber is dealt with to provide the finishing touch to the frame. The direction is brisk and the photography and editing are typical of Lang's style.

The DVD picture is very good. There are no extras.

Rating:
Summary: Good Lang, but a mixed bag.
Review: Restorations of a number of great German Lang films have recently been released on DVD (Metropolis, Niebelungen, Mabuse). Given the enormous stature of these early works, one is tempted to search carefully through his numerous Hollywood projects to find the forgotten classic even more accessible to the modern viewer. The idea of a collaboration with Bertolt Brecht would seem to hold considerable promise at capturing the best from two masters of Weimar expressionism.
There is a lot of good stuff going for "Hangmen", with its dark, shadowy vision and rapidly evolving storyline. However, the plot is plagued by war-era propoganda, which only weakens what should already be the compellingly tense situation of the Nazi occupation of Prague. Such sentimentallity is, of course, understandable, and was easily overcome by at least a few other contemporary Hollywood pictures.
Unfortunately, this film was consigned grade-B status by the studio, and it is the lack of acting talent (save a very effective job by Walter Brennan) that really hobbles the film. It is a bit disconcerting when the actors playing the Nazis exhibit much more personality than the wooden faced Czechs who we're supposed to be rooting for.
Not bad, there is so much interesting stuff that it deserves a viewing. But it's no masterpiece.

Rating:
Summary: Good Lang, but a mixed bag.
Review: Restorations of a number of great German Lang films have recently been released on DVD (Metropolis, Niebelungen, Mabuse). Given the enormous stature of these early works, one is tempted to search carefully through his numerous Hollywood projects to find the forgotten classic even more accessible to the modern viewer. The idea of a collaboration with Bertolt Brecht would seem to hold considerable promise at capturing the best from two masters of Weimar expressionism.
There is a lot of good stuff going for "Hangmen", with its dark, shadowy vision and rapidly evolving storyline. However, the plot is plagued by war-era propoganda, which only weakens what should already be the compellingly tense situation of the Nazi occupation of Prague. Such sentimentallity is, of course, understandable, and was easily overcome by at least a few other contemporary Hollywood pictures.
Unfortunately, this film was consigned grade-B status by the studio, and it is the lack of acting talent (save a very effective job by Walter Brennan) that really hobbles the film. It is a bit disconcerting when the actors playing the Nazis exhibit much more personality than the wooden faced Czechs who we're supposed to be rooting for.
Not bad, there is so much interesting stuff that it deserves a viewing. But it's no masterpiece.

Rating:
Summary: Lang and Brecht's film on the assassination of Heydrich
Review: The Czech government-in-exile helped director Fritz Lang and his co-author Bertolt Brecht create a story dealing with the assassination of Reinhard "The Hangman" Heydrich, the Reich Protector (i.e., military governor) of Bohemia and Moravia, and the persecution of those Czechoslovakians who were accused of participating in the attack. In reality, no one at the time knew what had happened to the Czech patriot who pumped three bullets into Heydrich on May 27, 1942. Brian Donlevy plays the assassin, Dr. Franticek Svoboda. The name is significant because "Svoboda" means Freedom in the Czech language. Hans Heinrich von Twardowski plays Heydrich and Walter Brennan has an interesting role as Stephan Novotny, a college professor help hostage by the Nazis. Once you get past the heavy-handed propaganda value of the story, Lang's craftsmanship stands out in this film. Besides coming up with an account of the assassination, the film deals with both the activites of the Czech Reistance fighters and the efforts of the Gestapo to catch the assassin while engaging in their brutal occupation of the country. On balance, an above average World War II melodrama, due more to Lang's direction than Donlevy's uneven performance.

Rating:
Summary: Lang and Brecht's film on the assassination of Heydrich
Review: The Czech government-in-exile helped director Fritz Lang and his co-author Bertolt Brecht create a story dealing with the assassination of Reinhard "The Hangman" Heydrich, the Reich Protector (i.e., military governor) of Bohemia and Moravia, and the persecution of those Czechoslovakians who were accused of participating in the attack. In reality, no one at the time knew what had happened to the Czech patriot who pumped three bullets into Heydrich on May 27, 1942. Brian Donlevy plays the assassin, Dr. Franticek Svoboda. The name is significant because "Svoboda" means Freedom in the Czech language. Hans Heinrich von Twardowski plays Heydrich and Walter Brennan has an interesting role as Stephan Novotny, a college professor help hostage by the Nazis. Once you get past the heavy-handed propaganda value of the story, Lang's craftsmanship stands out in this film. Besides coming up with an account of the assassination, the film deals with both the activites of the Czech Reistance fighters and the efforts of the Gestapo to catch the assassin while engaging in their brutal occupation of the country. On balance, an above average World War II melodrama, due more to Lang's direction than Donlevy's uneven performance.

Rating:
Summary: Rare, Exceptionally Fine Film
Review: This 1943 "war" film is both rare & exceptionally fine because, aside from its obviously high production quality & performances, (1) it gives a likely unique view of the breath of Walter Brennan's talents. Here he handles a Dramatic role to great credit, the only one I have seen in my years of numerous "old movies."
Also, (2) the film demonstrates, as few others do as well, the pain & struggles endured in occupied countries by anti-Nazi patriots, trying to resist & to survive to fight again.

Rating:
Summary: Better than I thought it would be
Review: Usually dismissed as propaganda this Fritz Lang epic actually one of the most ambitious films he ever made. Throughout the film there are nods to his german masterpieces M and METROPOLIS as if Lang had intended it to join this illustrious company. Unfortunately, Brian Donlevy couldn't act his way out of a wet paper bag with scissors in his hands, in fact all the heroic Czechs give fairly awful performances mistaking shouting for fervent patriotism. When sharing a screen with Granach and Schunzel (as the gestapo) the difference in ability is more than noticable.

The film starts with a wonderful sequence with Hans Von Twardovski as Heydrich (I know Heydrich was supposed to be camp, but not that camp!) Unfortunately Lang decided to concentrate on the wooden-as-baseball-bat Czechs rather than possibly the most evil man of the 20th Century and his fascinating rise to, and abuse of power.

Dennis "king of the B movie" O'keefe is always welcome in a film noir, as is the amusing cameo from Lionel Stander. You can tell that Lang intended this to be an unconventional propaganda movie, treating the plot as if it were a chessboard scenario, however this also means that it suffers in comparison with contemporary WW2 without the exhilarating climax of EDGE OF DARKNESS or the power of the long forgotten Andre Detoth's NONE SHALL ESCAPE (hint, Kino). Despite many impressive sequences the whole thing seems a bit lumpen and unwieldy and if I hear that patiotic song sung by the Czech hostages again I think I'll scream as if I'd been selected for execution.