AllMovie

A biting and effective semi-experimental film about Nazism in Germany, director Kurt Hoffmann tells the story in a long flashback, starting in 1913 and playing out like a silent movie on a small screen. Every once in awhile, the action scenes, which are narrated in a voiceover, are paused for a little ironic piano music and accompanying lyrics. Hans (Hansjorg Felmy) is an anti-Nazi journalist who loses his job because he will not join the party. Bruno (Robert Graf) is a dim-witted, brutal, pro-Nazi follower who joins up to gain the recognition he desires. Years later, Bruno is a ruthless industrialist whose Nazi tactics and philosophy have not changed at all, and Hans is a VIP editor now dedicated to exposing men like Bruno for what they were during the war. The result and the accompanying commentary are quite hard-hitting.