Speaking of Germany, people immediately think of well-known brands such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz, and then there is the rigorous and meticulous style of the Germans, and at the same time, it is a country rich in philosophical sages.
Of course, World War II and the Nazis are also topics that cannot be bypassed.
The Germans' reflection on that period of history and its profoundness are as famous in the world as their Mercedes-Benz cars. In the past, there was the collective alienation of fascism in "The Wave", and then the small figures in the war were gradually enlarged by the realistic method of "Our Fathers". evil.
The birth of "Fake Captain" is not only comparable to the above two works, but it can no longer be described by the word "profound", but is more chilling, darker, and even more terrifying .
The film is based on real historical events. The story takes place on the eve of Germany's defeat. At that time, the defeat of the German army was a foregone conclusion.
Among them was a private named Willie Herold, who was only 19 years old. In the process of fleeing, he picked up a captain's officer uniform, so he added a yellow robe and transformed into a gorgeous "officer" of the Third Reich. He rebuked Fang Qiu all the way, reaching the peak moment of his short life.
Young Willie Herold
The man in the photo above is Willie Herold in history, with a handsome face, even a little immature, but don't be fooled by his appearance.
Let's take a look at his short life history:
In 1943, Willie Herold joined the German Airborne Forces and participated in the Battle of Mount Cassino. In 1945, he returned to Germany with his troops, and was separated from his troops, becoming a deserter. During this period, he discovered a uniform of an Air Force captain, disguised himself as an Air Force captain and the special envoy of the head of state, infiltrated the Emsland Correctional Camp, and carried out a ruthless massacre of the prisoners. After the truth was discovered, he was arrested and imprisoned, but because the end of World War II, he was judged by the court as an excellent soldier with great leadership and resistance to defeatism, and escaped punishment and went free. He was captured by the British Royal Navy in Wilhelmshaven, Germany, in May of the same year, and executed in 1946 at the age of 21. Known as the "Eamesland Executioner"!
How about, isn't it enough legendary life.
But behind this so-called "legend" is the chilling bones and the annihilation of human nature under totalitarianism .
Private Willie Herold
The film "Fake Captain" is based on the true historical story of Willie Herold, and the story goes deep into Germany, using a "uniform" as a symbol of power to explore a national character that runs through German society, and then Shows the fundamental reason why the Shearer regime can develop in Germany.
The film uses black and white as a whole, and the scenes of World War II give the film a natural chill, but the story of the film can be separated from the background of the war and the framework of the war film, and become a journey through time, which can ask the history or point to the future. prophecy .
The Destruction of "God" and "Faith"
At the beginning of the film, Herold, played by Max Kubacher, was chased and hunted by the gendarmerie like a wild animal, and was extremely embarrassed.
But he miraculously survived the catastrophe and escaped the catastrophe, otherwise there would be a carrion in the wilderness, without the power and glory of the "imperial minister" behind him and the life of an executioner with a twisted human nature.
Let's put aside the human nature under power for the time being. How could a young Herold, with his rank as a private, deceive a group of high-ranking officers in the gendarmerie and correctional battalion?
The captain's uniform and beautiful acting skills are important, but if this individual event is placed in the context of the historical stage at that time and the collapse of the German army's overall belief and will, it is not difficult to understand.
From 1933 when Hitler, an "Austrian corporal", became the head of the German state and entered the stage of history, to the beginning of World War II when he invaded Poland in 1939, the German army was invincible and invincible.
The long-term devastation in the war made Hitler the "god" of the German people, and "invincibility" became the "belief" of the German soldiers.
When the war situation took a turn for the worse, all previous victories came to naught, the omnipotent "God" became helpless, and faith was loosened accordingly.
And Herold's youthful recklessness and wonderful acting skills made some confused senior officers feel the "God" in their hearts again, and strengthened the "faith" that had been loosened and gradually lost.
Therefore, when Herold fearfully said that he was personally appointed by the Führer, the gendarmerie captain raised his hand in salute and shouted long live, but in his heart Herold seemed to have become the incarnation of the Führer.
Just like being in a torrential flood, even if a piece of dead wood drifted from nowhere, it has become the hope of life, and you must hold on tight.
Unable to face failure and have nowhere to pray for the existence of "God", Herold appeared at the right time, like a messenger of God, filling the eyes of senior officers with a halo of faith and hope.
As for Herold's uniform that didn't seem to fit very well, and his face that was too green as a captain officer, it was no longer important.
Even the slightest doubters were disappeared under the personal authorization of the Führer and the full admiration and maintenance of other officers as Herold repeatedly asserted.
(Look at the above picture, the little look of admiration and awe at Herold, the charge captain Schutt standing behind)
The defeat of the German army made the aura of the Führer as the "god" of the German army begin to shatter, and the belief of the senior officers was lacking. After the appearance of Herold, this absurd, dark but not humorous but brutal and bloody farce.
From beginning to end, none of the senior officers of the gendarmerie, correctional battalion, and stormtroopers insisted that Herold produce relevant documents and documents, which is incredible, but reasonable.
Because if we only focus on the individual point of human nature and forget the general environment of the entire historical process at that time, it will be difficult to understand how such a bizarre thing can really happen to the Germans, who are known for their rigor.
The shattering of "God" and "Faith" made Herold the last hope of those people .
So in Emsland, Herold became a god .
Popular numbness and speculation
Herold is not alone in danger, he has also recruited many deserters along the way, and established the "Herold Action Team", which can also be called a first-level organization.
And many deserters in this "action team" are veterans who have experienced many battles. They have never eaten pork and have seen pigs go. Years of military career have given them a certain ability to identify.
Some of them were not without clues, but they also never questioned from beginning to end, and were willing to be included by Herold as an accomplice in the massacre.
And this is also an important reason for the achievement of the "herod myth".
So why?
Let's take a look at Herold's first "subordinate" - Flag Tower.
Flegetta, the first soldier Herold encountered after becoming "Captain", was exhausted and struggling.
Even an old soldier like this made Herold tremble and be overwhelmed because he was afraid of crossing the gang.
The acting skills after Qiangzuo's calm, and the halo of the captain's military uniform, made Herold quickly grasp the temperament and start the performance.
On the other hand, Flegetta has completely lost the sense of smell of a veteran. The war has made him tired, fatigue has slowed his thinking, and traveling alone makes him long for his fellow man . He is numb .
He didn't notice Herold's loose military trousers, and he didn't think too much about how such a young senior officer and a broken car could appear out of nowhere in this wilderness.
He didn't even have the slightest doubt about Herold's initial guilty expression and incoherence.
Numbness and survival, the first choice he made was to ask to be included in the captain's command, and to please the captain to help the captain out of the predicament.
In exchange for his confession, he got an apple to eat and a driver's license that no longer needs to walk.
Along the way, he fulfilled his duties, was loyal to Herold, and truly regarded him as his superior, even his master.
In essence, he was not really dull, and there was a trace of waves in his numb heart .
On the way to escape, he witnessed Herold shooting deserters, but Herold explained that it was a last resort in order to gain the trust of the villagers, and he accepted.
But in the correctional camp, when Herold condoned Kibinski's brutal beating of prisoners, he was stunned, and he tried to persuade and even beg Herold, but failed.
When Herold started to execute a large number of prisoners with artillery bombardment, he was silent, just quietly watching the scenes of the horrific images in the world.
Fleggeta is just a representative of a type of people in the "Herod Squad". They are physically and mentally exhausted. They are only the breathing shells of walking dead.
For all bloody, violent and inhuman practices, they are like a spectator, and their inability is the best excuse.
As for who Herold was and what he did, it didn't matter.
Numbness is their first magic weapon for survival.
If Flageta's numbness is just an unintentional accomplice, then Kibinski is blatantly playing tricks.
Kibinski is one of the most certain characters in the entire film to see through Herold, from their first encounter in the village house, Herold's long baggy trousers, let him. Kibinski gave a wicked smile.
But he didn't point it out, and he didn't question it, but, like Flegetta, asked to be included under the captain's command.
Kibinski's plea, unlike Flageta's , is not numb, but has a clear purpose - an opportunist .
When Herold pretended to interrogate prisoners in the correctional camp, Kibinski was the first to step up and help with the execution.
At the back, he shot prisoners, beat prisoners, shelled prisoners, and he participated as the main force in every matter.
He did it for a fundamentally different reason than Flegetta, who was to live, and Spinsky to get.
He didn't point out Herold, and wanted to rely on this fake "ensignment", so that he could get more catharsis and enjoyment, so that his empty mind and body could be double satisfied.
In fact, he never put Herold in his eyes. He was just pretending to be in front of others, and he was full of ridicule towards Herold in his heart.
Satisfying appetite can still keep him sensible and respectful to Herold, but when faced with physical and sensual stimulation, it makes him reveal his unrestrained nature.
So, finally, because a woman with big tits angered Herold, he was stripped and shot.
Spinsky is another representative of the "Herold Action Team" who have lost hope for the future. The defeat makes them disdain for their own efforts and turn into contempt for power, but ironically, they are not. A speculator who wants to rely on power to have fun in a timely manner.
Whether it is numbness or speculation , if Herold is a dragon, then these two kinds of people are the wings of this dragon .
Instead of piercing Herold objectively, they protected the "Air Force Captain".
They, like those high-ranking officers, contributed to Herold's "myth".
Humanity crawls under totalitarianism
In fact, so far, the analysis of Herold himself in the film should be the simplest.
He is not complicated, a young soldier who has experienced war, it is precisely because he is young that he is so ignorant that he dares to pretend to be a senior officer.
That military uniform is like a pair of magical armor to him. After wearing it, he can transform into a gorgeous, invulnerable, wonderful acting and all kinds of favorable time and place, so an executioner was born.
When the power is given to a small person who has been oppressed and bullied , but is not constrained and supervised, it will often have a huge and terrible backlash against the society and the public, and even create a devil.
Through the film, we can watch Herold step by step from a hunted soldier to an executioner who kills without blinking an eye, and even plays a killing game.
The desperation of being hunted.
The panic when I just put on the captain's uniform.
After calming down, he glanced back, and his eyes already showed the lingering of war and power.
The first shot of a compatriot.
Tie prisoners together, let them escape, and enjoy the thrill of a killing game yourself.
Enjoy the thrill of high power.
Prisoners were bombarded with anti-aircraft guns and smashed with lime.
At this time, Herold had become a murderous demon. His straight military uniform became more fit and heroic, and he had really regarded himself as "Captain Herold".
Even when he was tried in a military court, he said that what he did was to resist the growing defeatism (it turned out that he had been promoting positive energy).
As mentioned earlier, unrestrained power will have a great backlash, and even make itself hallucinatory.
So did Herold, so did Hitler .
And the easter egg at the end of the film is a stroke of genius . In the picture, Herold and other Nazis traveled through time and space and came to the streets of Germany in modern time and space.
They are still wearing Nazi uniforms, struttingly molesting women on the streets, violating personal rights, robbing, and committing the same atrocities that were more than 70 years ago.
The irony is: no one dared to resist, and no one escaped.
Modern people who claim to be civilized only know how to cooperate docilely under the power and obscenity of the slaughter machines in these wars.
This is the most profound reflection in the entire film .
"Captain Herold" could have used this uniform to choose to be good, but he chose to be depraved, but what is more ironic is a large group of ordinary people who pretend to be confused.
Humans have the instinct to obey and worship authoritarianism, but the soldiers in the movie obey more thoroughly. They obey only the symbolic by-product of authoritarianism: Nazi uniforms , and for this reason, they easily give up their "human" attributes.
Those who remain silent when they understand the darkness of human nature are eventually swallowed up by this dark silence and become an inseparable part of totalitarianism. This is the most terrifying chapter of the film.
As stated in The Origins of Totalitarianism: "The real terror of totalitarianism is that it rules over a population of utterly silent inhabitants ." This is the evil of banality.
The solemnity brought by the black and white tones and the sense of tranquility created by the language of the lens make the viewer become another part of the silence.
The carnival, trial, and walk on the dry bones at the end drag the story into a deeper blackness, and the absurdity of "The Fake Captain" makes this blackness magical and unreal. However, this is actually adapted from real historical facts. This gap between reality and reality can only be described as horror .
The change of human nature and the reshaping of personality may be far more absurd and tortuous than dramatic stories, and the best way may be to never give people a chance to degenerate.
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