(***)

“The world needs to know what these men did.” 

That’s the thesis that drives The Allies who’d beaten Germany. The reason they form an International Military Tribunal and create the world’s first global trial, a reckoning that sought to hold the highest officers in the Nazi regime accountable for their atrocities. In mid 1945, Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany became the site of the Nuremberg Trials. France, the Soviet Union, UK and USA collaborated. Nazi party leaders like Hermann Göring, who was also the Supreme Commander of the Air Force, were captured or surrendered and imprisoned while awaiting trial. The history is deep, the tribunal iconic and the outcome a lesson for all those who invaded other countries and committed heinous crimes against humanity. 

Parallels to Nazi behavior are rampant around the world today. Dictators and wannabe dictators didn’t learn much from WWII, that fascistic period or the outcome of the trial. The timing couldn’t be better for a refresher course. The source material for this history/drama/thriller is the 2013 nonfiction book The Nazi and the Psychiatrist, by Jack El-Hai. A tome that captures the real-life tête-à-tête between Göring and U.S. Army psychiatrist Dr. Douglas Kelley. They became frenemies. Writer/director James Vanderbilt takes the reigns. His filmography is light as a filmmaker and more credible as a writer (Zodiac, The Amazing Spider-Man). Was assigning Vanderbilt director duties a gamble?  

Opening sequences are heavy on the production elements. At first, the flashy cinematography (Dariusz Wolski, Martian), rich production design (Eve Stewart, Les Misérables), brand-new clothes (Bartholomew Cariss, RocknRolla), pronounced art direction (Julianna Cristescu and Tibor Lázár) and pushy musical score (Brian Tyler, Fast and Furious) are overwhelming,. Like you’re watching a made-for-TV-movie on steroids. Too perfect, too decorated and over dramatic. Off putting in ways that may make audiences keep their emotional distance. But if they disregard the glossy ornamentation, the heart of the story is a fight against an evil snake who pedaled hate, derision and intimidation and almost got away with it. Once Kelley meets Göring, intense psychological dynamics add nicely to the leadup to a courtroom drama of very high standards. 

US Supreme Court justice Robert H. Jackson (Michael Shannon, The Shape of Water) gets the call. He’s been asked to be the lead prosecutor and assemble a team for a trial like no other. Hermann Göring (Russell Crowe, Gladiator) has been caught and sits in a cell—along with other Nazi relics. He’s impervious, emboldened and his opiate addiction adds to his steely demeanor. To prosecute him, they have to get him to talk. He doesn’t, or lies to appease. Only admitting that Germany was sending Jews to “work camps,” not “death camps.” That’s his alibi. Breaking him is the task. Jackson: “I’m gonna to put Hermann Göring on the stand and make him tell the world what he did.”

Army psychiatrist Douglas Kelley (Rami Malek, Queen) is called in to analyze the infamous prisoner. To look for a crack in his façade. Initially, the Nazi officer only speaks German, acting like he doesn’t understand English. Eventually that charade drops, and the two cautiously, skeptically talk to each other, looking for weaknesses. It’s an increasingly fascinating head game between a shrink and a mastermind. Accusations are hurled and tension grows to the point of shouting matches. “I am a prisoner because you won, and we lost. Not because you’re morally superior!” screams Göring. As the trial comes, a conviction is not a certainty. All involved are determined but unsure as Göring, now on a worldwide stage, manipulates the courtroom to his benefit.

The footage has four elements that become stronger with each frame. The cat/mouse relationship between the two lead characters. The performances they give, which are matched by a stellar supporting cast. A ground-breaking event that became an archetype. And evidence of the heartless killing, discarding and incineration of Jewish people. 

When the probing dialogue becomes outward hostility, the dynamics of the relationship between doctor and non-patient become fiery. The overweight, obstinate commander is intimidating and stubborn. Like a lion. The very slight, nervous and unimposing psychiatrist is his antithesis. Like a mouse who nudges a beast. Both eventually inflicting emotional and psychological abuse in traumatizing ways. This drama is so thick and self-contained it could be a fascinating Broadway play. Russell is blustery, imposing and vile. Malek has the more obvious character arc. Hard to appreciate his performance fully, until he lashes out at Göring in a pivotal, confrontational cell room scene where he blasts his adversary. It’s an Oscar®-worthy moment. Shannon is equally great as the judge turned stoic prosecutor. Leo Woodall (White Lotus), as Sgt. Howie Triest, commands his showy and emotional role as Kelley’s translator and conscience. Richard E. Grant as Britain’s lead prosecutor shines too. 

The probable audience for this courtroom drama is older and likely only vaguely remembers its history. They, and others, may have forgotten the trial’s final outcome. Hence this project’s importance. When the film blends in black and white vintage footage of piles of emaciated Jewish bodies being plowed away like snow, it’s shocking. A stunning visual that corroborates the horror of the Holocaust in ways that 1000 courtroom recollections, accusations and denials could ever do. The gravity of “The Final Solution,” what Göring is brushing aside, becomes blatant and indelible.  

Sit through the first slow-paced, overproduced part and the reward for not giving up is a supreme history lesson. One that reminds us that those who do ungodly deeds today, can be held accountable tomorrow. Forced to explain themselves and face justice. A soothing notion for these times. 

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvAy9C-bipY
Photos courtesy of the Toronto International Film Festival 
For more information about the Toronto International Film Festival go to https://tiff.net/. 
Visit Film Critic Dwight Brown at DwightBrownInk.com.