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‘Heavy Hands and Light Touches’: Approaches to the Study of Cinematic Culture in the Third Reich
Author(s) -
Fox Jo
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
history compass
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.121
H-Index - 1
ISSN - 1478-0542
DOI - 10.1111/1478-0542.061
Subject(s) - nazi germany , nazism , movie theater , feature film , aesthetics , sociology , socialism , political science , media studies , art , art history , law , communism , politics
In 1996, Eric Rentschler claimed that ‘cinema in the Third Reich involved a division of labour between heavy hands and light touches’. Such a description is a fitting comment on both the organisational processes of the propaganda machine under the Nazis and the sometimes inconsistent messages of their feature film productions. Issues surrounding the nature of cinematic culture in the Third Reich have prompted intense debates among film scholars. This article seeks to outline the key debates and issues, concluding with an analysis of Veit Harlan's Der große König , with reference to the diverse methodological approaches employed to study film under National Socialism. It argues that one needs to understand both the ‘heavy hands’ and the ‘light touches’ of NS film policy and production to enable a deeper understanding of feature films produced in the Third Reich.