At the Wannsee Conference on January 20, 1942, senior Nazi officials meet to determine the manner in which the so-called "Final Solution to the Jewish Question" can be best implemented.At the Wannsee Conference on January 20, 1942, senior Nazi officials meet to determine the manner in which the so-called "Final Solution to the Jewish Question" can be best implemented.At the Wannsee Conference on January 20, 1942, senior Nazi officials meet to determine the manner in which the so-called "Final Solution to the Jewish Question" can be best implemented.
- Won 2 Primetime Emmys
- 7 wins & 21 nominations total
- Maid
- (as Claire Bullus)
- Adjutant 1
- (as Ross O'Hennessey)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaSince detailed records of the Wannsee Conference did not survive World War II, minor details of the movie (such as the seating arrangement at the conference table, what was actually served for lunch, and who was wearing a uniform compared to who wasn't) were totally up to the guess of the producers, and not based on any historical evidence. The producers and writer did have access to more primary material than it might seem at first. During his trial in Israel, Adolf Eichmann provided many details about the subject of the movie, even down to specific conversations, the general tone of the meeting, and other details. In particular, it's worth noting that a good bit of the dialogue in the movie is lifted verbatim from relevant memos and speeches by Nazi officials that were preserved, are part of the historical record, and cited by numerous sources. Many specific locutions used by the men in the movie can be found as cited, for instance, in Gitta Sereny's book "Albert Speer: His Battle with Truth" as well as other sources. The single-page, neutered summary of the meeting that survived in the files of the German Foreign Office is far from the only primary source used by the filmmakers.
- GoofsAt the beginning of the film, place cards are being made using the traditional Germanic Gothic, or "Fraktur" font. Although the font was initially used by the Nazis, it was claimed in 1941 to be "Judenlettern" (Jewish letters) by Martin Bormann himself, who banned its use. The movie takes place in 1942.
- Quotes
Müller: Perhaps the judge has a special love for them?
Klopfer: [mutters appreciatively] Yes, yes a special love for them... very good...
Dr. Wilhelm Stuckart: For whom? For Jews? Wonderful, you don't have my credentials. Forgive me, from your uniform I can infer that you're shallow, ignorant and naive about the Jews. Your line, what the party rants on about is how inferior they are, some-some-some sub-species, and I keep saying how wrong that is! They are sublimely clever. And they are intelligent as well. My indictments to that race are stronger and heavier because they are real, not uneducated ideology. They are arrogant and self-obsessed and calculating and reject the Christ and I will not have them pollute German blood!
General Reinhard Heydrich: [tries to calm Stuckart down] Please, Doctor...
Dr. Wilhelm Stuckart: He doesn't understand! And neither do his people. Deal with the reality of the Jew and the world will applaud us. Treat them as imaginary phantoms, evil in human fantasies, and the world would have justified contempt for us! To kill them casually without regard for the law martyrs them, which will be their victory! Sterilization recognizes them as a part of our species but prevents them from being a part of our race. They'll disappear soon enough. And we will have acted in defense of our race and of our species and by the law! This fellow mentioned the law for the protection of German blood, *I wrote that law*! When you have my credentials then we'll talk about who loves the Jews and who hates them. Pigs don't know how to hate. I know, too, that when it comes to the half-mixed, that to kill them abandons that half of their blood which is German.
Klopfer: I'll remember you.
Dr. Wilhelm Stuckart: You should. I'm very well known.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The 53rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2001)
- SoundtracksString Quintet in C Major', D.956: Adagio
Written by Franz Schubert
Performed by Ensemble Villa Musica
courtesy of Naxos of America
by arrangement with Source Q
15 officials from various departments were in attendance, chaired by SS Chief of Security Reinhard Heydrich (Kenneth Branagh) and SS Major Adolf Eichmann (Stanley Tucci), and has in its members several lawmakers and doctors. They sit and debate (well, not much of a debate actually) the notion of evacuating (read: Eliminate) the Jews, and you'll probably witness how casual it all sounded to some of the members.
It was interesting to see how Heydrich cajoled everyone into agreeing to his plans, by hook or by crook. And it's very chilling to see how semantics were danced about, and how methods were discussed as if it was a process so trivial - the building of concentration camps, the techniques of gassing and how to perform it, the statistics of the kill that would have them reach their target numbers intended.
Based on a surviving record of that meeting, despite the fact that the minutes are to be read, memorized and destroyed, this HBOfilm is a good watch to peek into the decision making process, into that stain in human history, and the unthinkable evil that humans are capable of.
If you're a fan of Downfall, then perhaps this depiction of history will interest you.
- DICK STEEL
- Jan 21, 2006
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Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Konspirationen
- Filming locations
- Haus der Wannsee-Konferenz, Am Grossen Wannsee 56-58, Zehlendorf, Berlin, Germany(Conference Building)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 36 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.78 : 1