Nuremberg Movie Review
Exploring one of the most significant trials to ever take place on the world stage, Nuremberg takes a cinematically epic approach to the story of how the 22 surviving Nazi leadership were held accountable for their heinous crimes against the world after Germany surrendered to the allies, ending The Second World War. The gravity and importance of this world changing trial is not lost on filmmaker James Vanderbilt, who has made a film that feels as big and epic as the trials themselves, utilising powerhouse performers such as Russell Crowe and Michael Shannon to bring the gravitas.
Nuremberg follows two main story threads that simultaneously correlate with each other leading up to, but also examines different aspects, of the trial itself. The first follows Lt. Col. Douglas Kelley (Rami Malek), a U.S. Army psychiatrist who is brought in to evaluate the mental health of the survivors to deem if they are fit enough for trial. Along with the assistance of a translator, Sgt. Howard Triest (Leo Woodall), Kelley becomes more interested in trying to understand what made these men so evil, hoping that his investigations will prove interesting enough to write a tell-all book for his own profit and pride. During his assessments, Kelley begins forming a bond with Hitler’s second-in-command, Reichsmarshall Hermann Goring (Crowe), an incredibly intimidating and intelligent man, who is insistent that he will not hang for his crimes.
The second narrative strand follows Associate Justice Robert Jackson (Shannon), who takes on the monumental task of bringing together the allied nations to attempt a prosecution with no previously established legal precedent. Attempting to convince governments, leaders, and even the Pope, Jackson’s tenacity ends up leading to the trials taking place, and the landmark decisions to set the precedent for prosecuting global war crimes for the future.
WIth grand production design and sets that immerse you into the film, the pure scale of Nuremberg is astounding, serving as an epic cinematic allegory for the scale of the events being portrayed. From the dank claustrophobia of the prison holding the 22 Nazi’s, to the grand hall that was reconstructed as the court room for the trials, and even the desolation of a post-war Europe makes this film feel so large in scale. There is also a grand, sweeping directorial style that Vanderbilt focuses on that invokes a nostalgic feeling of historical epics of the 80s and 90s. Vanderbilt treats the source material with respect, but he also makes it feel like a film, knowing that the drama will propel the audience into the film, more so than just being a documentary-like recounting of the trials.
Something that really exacerbates that movie-like feeling are the grand performances, especially from Russell Crowe, who dons the German accent with ease, and commands the screen with an authoritative vigor. Playing a character rooted in such evil as Herman Goring would seemingly be a tough ask for an actor to find the humanity within him, but Crowe manages to break through the smug exterior and break in to the emotional aspects of Goring, which in turn makes for a complicated, yet riveting exploration into the bond that forms between Goring and Kelley.
Rami Malek also brings his incredible ability as an actor to be able to convincingly make the audience understand the pride and ego that drives Kelley, but also the innate curiosity and empathy that leads to his fascination with Goring. As Kelley becomes more invested in their relationship, and his ideas for the tell-all book begin to grow, Malek’s subtlety and nuance begin to show the cracks that form in his ego, and how that affects the bigger picture at play in regards to the trial themselves.
There isn’t a single wasted talent in this film, with each performer, no matter how long they spend on screen, leaning into the scale of the story with performances to match. Michael Shannon’s goosebump-inducing monologue to open the court proceedings and a black-mail-y conversation with The Pope serve as highlights for an actor who is always delivering fantastic performances. But, the under-appreciated standout of the film is Leo Woodall, who starts as more of a side-character, but delivers a powerful and emotional monologue towards the start of the film’s climatic moments that adds another brilliant layer of emotional substance to a story that is already quite moving.
Even at 2 and a half hours long, there isn’t a moment of Nuremberg that isn’t riveting. This is a cinematically epic film that’s scale is felt through its incredible direction, stunning production design, and gravitas performances, while never sacrificing the emotion of this moving and significant true story.
Nuremberg is in Australian cinemas December 4
