War Really Does Destroy All Things
When one thinks of World War II, some things they may think of include Germany, the Nazi Party, the Holocaust, Pearl Harbor, Japan, the atom bomb, and poverty. After World War II, Nazi Germany was pushed back, and a more sedated Germany took it's place. The 1991 German hit “Europa” helped address some of the difficulties facing post-war Germany immediately after World War II. In this movie, an American named Leopold Kessler moves to Germany after World War II to work as a night train conductor. His uncle is German by descent and helped him get this job. Throughout the movie, his uncle plays the mentor figure to Kessler, since his uncle is also a conductor. Through the main character's travels, Kessler finds out about post-war Germany's struggles and the insanity that takes place almost every day through the misinterpretation of culture and the negligence of politics.
This movie is a bilingual film, where both English and German are used to communicate important plot events. However, there was no “English subtitled” version available to watch. It is safe to say that about 5/6 of all dialogue in the film is in German, which makes it very frustrating to watch, since both languages are used to communicate events. In order to understand parts of the film which could not be interpreted, further background research had to be done. This left a large part of the not understood. Despite this difficulty, though, it was still possible to understand the gist of the dialogue.
The film helps show many things about post-war Germany. The most obvious change and frustration to the German people is the constant presence of UN police and other country's generals and colonels. This people are supposed to watch over German and help eliminate any neo-Nazi movements. At one point in the movie, an American colonel pulls Kessler aside and tells Kessler that if he spots any Nazis, to let the colonel know. This dual-allegiance plays an important part in the story, as every character has some sort of dual-allegiance, whether it's to actual people or objects (such as alcohol or money). At one point in the film, Kessler comes across a woman named Katharina Hartmann (aka Kate). Kate has a dual-allegiance to her father and an uprising terrorist group called Werwolves. The symbolism behind “werwolves” is similar to the mythical creature. A member is a normal everyday person during the day, and at night, they act as members of the organization. At a pivotal point in the movie, Kessler is confronted with the decision to bomb the train upon which he works by his now-wife, Kate. This is yet another dual-allegiance that must be decided upon. Eventually, Kessler picks the side of the werwolves (for the wrong reasons). This new uprising threat of dual-allegiance stems from the destruction of Germany, which resulted from the outcome of World War II. Because of World War II, Germany lost its nationalistic pride, and the rise of the Nazi party attempted to eliminate any cultural diversity from Germany. The point here is not how culture affects political decisions, but how the politics affected culture in Germany.
After World War II, Germany was ravaged and turned into a destitute nation, split by the Berlin Wall. The display of poverty throughout the movie is incredibly obvious, from the passengers climbing aboard the train (and hanging off the sides) just to use it to the complete destruction of building in any offered shots of the city. In order to add to the poverty effect, elements of mis-en-scen were used, mainly black and white lighting, and often times, low key lighting. Dark shots with ruined furniture portrayed a country full of destruction. In some occasions, the use of Dutch Angle and bird's eye shots helped show either horrific damage and loss or crowded plazas (to emphasize the amount of poverty-striken families). All of these poverty-related traits are directly linked to the political situation. Obviously, Germany just underwent a gigantic reform. With this reform, Germany lost a lot of it's economic drive, thus pummeling the entire nation into poverty. Its very clear that Germany's poverty and the political state of the nation is directly related.
Since its been established that Germany's economy was in peril, it is now possible to show the loss of cultural identity in Germany using “Europa” as a guide to Germany (or how it is represented). Besides the trademark use of black-and-white and other elements of mis-en-scen to show poverty, other elements were used to show distance and new, unwanted change. Black-and-white color schemes already tend to feel distant, old, and unemotional. There was also a scene in the movie used to show the abolition of the old culture, and how this old culture is being replaced by a new, more violent culture. In the scene, a little boy somehow accumulates a gun and shoots and old man who is trying to offer the boy chocolate. This is exemplified by the mis-en-scene used, particularly lens tricks. When the boy is shooting the old man, the boy is enlarged, and seems to be dominant, while the old man is crippled, pushed against a wall, and trembling. Then, when the police step in and find the boy, the effect is reversed. There is a low angle shot from behind the boy up towards the police, and the boy is shrunken, making the boy appear incredibly small. This violent apparition makes it apparent that Germany is changing after World War II. It can also be said that because such a young image is destroying the older, more traditional, and more established image that the older culture is being lost because of this new political change.
However, political issues addressed in this movie do not simply end at the change of Germany's government. Earlier, it was mentioned that the entire world seemed to by imposing themselves into Germany's development, trying to stop another atrocious political regime. However, the almost overbearing monitoring becomes apparent when a US colonel goes to every German citizen making them complete a questionnaire, which hopes to identify possible Nazi allies and Nazi sympathizers. If a citizen is identified as one, they are arrested and taken into custody for further questioning. This process directly affects the main character, Kessler, when Kate's father (who practically owns the entire transportation industry in post-war Germany) is asked to take this test. Although Kate's father is completely innocent, the American paid a Jewish man to sign a paper stating that Kate's father was seen wearing a Nazi uniform, effectively framing him. Kate's father, completely torn to pieces by this horrible act, commits suicide (seemingly randomly). The further effort to control Germany is shown when Kate tries to bury her father somewhere. The entire ceremony is broken up by yet another international police force when the force starts shooting guns to make people leave. Apparently, ceremonies are no longer allowed. The body was confiscated and the almost militaristic rule made people crawl, dash, and limp to safety. Another issue that again comes up is the issue of dual-allegiance, as seen and shown by Kessler. The international policing issue is further extended by promotion and encouragement of committing yourself to more than one country. Kessler was both American, yet German. He knew German, and worked a German job, and even married a German woman. However, he was still born an American, and was imposed upon duties that made him an American spy, almost. In the end, Kate was arrested, and the one to thank was Kessler, although not by his own will. The American colonel chose Kessler to “lure” out Kate, a famous terrorist from the Werwolf organization. In the end, it turns out Kate was exposed for writing threatening letters to her father in order to make him kill himself. She did this for her organization. This exemplifies an almost contradictory pledge of duality, which is another issue in itself. After finding out this event (and several others), Kessler is also driven over the edge and seizes a gun from an international police officer. He then proceeds to run up and down the train threatening to shoot passengers who have previously irritated him and caused him problems. He solves his problems by detonating a bomb on the train (previously given to him by Kate for the very same purpose). In the end, this train explosion kills him by drowning him after the train falls into a river due to the bomb. This ironic end almost tells a hidden moral about allegiances: “To be unaligned is to die.”
It appears that culture can be lost due to political confusion (and reform). Clearly, if the entire country changes, it is incredibly simple to get lost. Political decisions have the strongest impact on culture in a country. Yet, some would argue for the opposite side of the argument, saying that politics is controlled by a cultural gesture. However, this movie shows that for post-war Germany, political upset can literally change the lives and pasts of the citizens. In the end, the war destroyed the German people, the continuation of important culture and tradition, and the entire German cityscape. In the end, war really did destroy everything. War tends to do that.
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