Introduction
James Vanderbilt’s Nuremberg has all the elements of being a success on paper. First-class crafts. An enticing and dramatic historical premise. Along with a bevy of overqualified actors giving good-to-great performances. Unfortunately, the filmmakers couldn’t be bothered to try a little harder to make the film worthwhile.
If you are looking for empty, dramatized platitudes like “People need to know!” or “We can’t let this happen again!” then this is the film for you. The stakes of the Nuremberg Trials are much more inflated in this film than they were in real life. And that’s the problem. When the actual trial that the entire film is anticipating takes a total screentime of 20 minutes for a 148-minute film, you have to squeeze every possible consequence into that 20 minutes.
One character even implies that the Nazis will rise back to power if the trials don’t go the right way. Obviously, I was not there in 1945-46. But the insertions of grandiose proclamations are solely for narrative heft, rather than any concrete reality.
Themes/Issues
Despite ample opportunities to dive into the literal psychology of Nazi leaders, the film doesn’t dare to understand their reasoning or hatred. It puts a mask of respectability on Goering, while fully and cartoonishly demonizing the others.
I’m not advocating for showing the humanity of the worst surviving members of the Nazi party. However, there has to be some dramatic push-pull outside of Hitler’s number two, Hermann Goering (Russell Crowe, trying his best). There has to be some potential for these people to be released into the world, but these men are shown to be the monsters under the bed as they are portrayed in this film and their war actions.
Even when the film has a morsel of something interesting, it’s little more than a passing fancy. Army psychologist Douglas Kelly (Rami Malek, who can’t figure out a good role since his Oscar win) and his interactions with Goering get a bulk of the screentime.
Initially, Kelly gauges the mental competency of the prisoners, but he quickly pivots to understand the mind of Goering to eventually write a book on the subject. While it’s refreshing to have such clear ulterior motives laid bare, Kelly quickly grows close to Goering, even reaching out and forming a friendly relationship with Goering’s wife and child.
Of course, just in case we forgot what this was about, a courtroom scene where video evidence of the atrocities of the Holocaust is presented to the court (using actual footage). While undoubtedly captivating and horrifying, the footage is used merely as a plot swing for Kelly to change his friendly tune on Goering.
That’s continually the most frustrating aspect. Actual historical facts tell the story the film wants to tell, instead of the entire reason the film exists in the first place. Of course, the script shoehorns a bit of invented intrigue and light mutiny for Kelly, just because his superior (John Slattery, barely breaking a sweat) doesn’t like him. It’s not enough for Kelly to work against a Nazi perpetrator. He defies authority after he hears the war story of an interpreter (Leo Woodall, doing really nice work). The film ties itself in knots to explain asinine actions.
Supporting Cast
Meanwhile, Michael Shannon anchors the other half of the film as Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson, who is in charge of the prosecution. There are a half-dozen roadblocks the film feels the need to overexplain, just to make it more dramatic. A side plot involving Jackson’s potential appointment as Chief Justice gives Jackson more subtext, but is otherwise pointless. Shannon takes everything as seriously as he needs to and provides the film with the energy it needs when Crowe isn’t on-screen.
Crowe, who has lately been toiling away in more anonymous films, proves his raw talent as an actor once again. He is not afraid to make Goering likable, but more importantly, completely in control. He is smooth, charismatic, and calculating in his interactions with Kelly, as well as his interactions in court.
The Oscar-winner hasn’t had many chances to stretch himself in a role, and it’s nice to see he still has it. Richard E. Grant gets a few nice moments to shine as British prosecutor David Maxwell Fyfe, with Mark O’Brien, Wrenn Schmidt, and Andreas Pietschmann adding to the ensemble. Colin Hanks makes a pointlessly brief appearance, lasting only a few minutes before leaving as quickly as he arrived.
Conclusion
Nuremberg has all the looks of a courtroom epic and all the thrills of a term paper. At least Crowe and Shannon get to ramp up their acting abilities.
