The Rape of Europa
by Richard Berge;Bonni Cohen;Nicole Newnham
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DVD details
Actor: Joan AllenDirector: Richard Berge;Bonni Cohen;Nicole Newnham
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Color, DVD-Video, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 117 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-09-16
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Menemsha Films
DVD Reviews of The Rape of Europa
DVD Review: A halocaust within a halocaust.
Summary: 4 Stars
While whole races of people were being killed, & world war raged, whole cultures from the millenium of these people were being destroyed. That is the subject of this outstanding documentary. It happened in eastern Europe by the Nazi & later the Soviets & to lesser extent in western Europe. Art objects & icons of civilizations were simply wantonly destroyed. Unless these criminals could enrich themselves simply by stealing what could be carried away. The Russian were complicent in this pillaging. Remember they were allies of the Nazis in the early years of World War II. Eastern Europe especially Poland was raped twice. Once by the Nazis & then by the advancing Russian Army as the Germans retreated later in the war. This discussion is not centered on the millions of people that were exterminated. You can never minimize that. But those people left behind art of exquisite beauty & value, not only monetary but to the world itself. Much documentation is surfacing recently as to original ownership of this property be it nations or individuals. Of some interest was the attempts of various conquered people in western Europe who had more time to hide their treasures from the Germans. The entire collection of the Lourve in Paris was removed & hidden throughout France. The Allies who liberated Europe were not blameless as members of the military were able ro smuggle "spoils of war", home. Even the United States itself sent shiploads of art objects back to the states for "safekeeping". I trust that much of that will & is being returned to its rightful owners. Time is really no barrier with the technolgy we have today. Many of these works have already lasted 1,000 years. You know, that was how longer Hitler said the Third Reich would exist.DVD Review: Rape of Europa DVD about WWII art thefts from the Jews...
Summary: 4 Stars
Interesting DVD ~2 hours about how in WWII Nazies stole art treasurers from the Jews & the efforts to recover them.
Informative, well documented. Only complaint is that producer sometimes thinks is producing a music CD, & the background music hides the heavy accents of the speakers.
Amazon had much better price than direct sources.
DVD Review: The secret of WWII
Summary: 5 Stars
This is an amazing account of a little know aspect of Hitler's ambition during the Second World War. It's a MUST for every history buff!DVD Review: Excellent Accounts Of War Injustices By The Germans, Americans, and Russians
Summary: 5 Stars
The movie is aptly titled "The Rape of Europe" - the war and the conflicts led the Germans, Americans, and Russians to destroy each others' art and cultural heritages.
I am an avid art historian, and I am grateful this documentary was made. It recounts many atrocities of Hitler's ravages across Europe. Unquestionably, Hitler and the Germans systematically stole or destroyed art and culture from others. It is important for future generations to remember the immeasurable harm that came from the Nazis' conquest to attempt to achieve their vision of a larger and richer German empire, an empire that was built on the false moral premises that they were racially superior and it was acceptable for them to steal from racially-inferior people.
Other reviewers have warrantedly criticized this documentary for not equally reporting on the American and Russian destruction of their adversaries' art and cultural buildings. There are a few accounts of American and Russian carpet bombings. There are specific accounts of American attempts to avoid unnecessarily destroying some of their adversaires' cities and structures, but this documentary appears to have primarily a pro-allies perspective. I wish the documentary had accounted more of the allied atrocities. This war led all the nations involved to commit unbearable horrors against each other. World War II eventually led all the nations involved to participate in a rape of European arts, civility, and cultures.
DVD Review: A Flawed Premise
Summary: 3 Stars
The Rape of Europa recounts the story of Hitler's rejection from the Vienna School of Art and suggests that because he failed to get into art school he made the plundering of art a priority during WWII.
Without a doubt, Hitler was a thief. But I think it's a mistake to link these events as causal. Hitler stole everything he could get his hands on to pay for WWII. Property, gold-even the hair of concentration camp prisoners to stuff pillows. As a painter he could appreciate fine art, but as a dictator he knew it's value to the Third Reich. The removal and dessimation of cultural symbols played upon enemies psychologically. This movie almost has you believing that Hitler WENT to war to build a personal art collection. It's like saying Hitler's bumpy complexion in his teenage years later led to the practice of taking the skin of concentration camp victims to cover lamp shades. One event doesn't necessarily lead to another. It's a little absurd when more rational explanations are available for his actions-greed, a thirst for power, xenophobia, unpaid war bills.
The Rape of Europa also fails to address some important points in the taking of art from Jews during WWII. The Widelstein Family and many art collectors in the South of France helped Hitler move parts of his collection for money-and these people were Jewish. In other words, without the help of Jews some of this wouldn't have happened. In fact, many of the art works that remain unaccounted for were moved through the Widelstein family whereas the art that remained in Germany or with Hitler was repatriated to its righful owners. There is an interesting psychology in this. And as others reviewers have pointed out, what about the bombing of Dresden? This movie goes to great lengths to discuss the allied attempt to delay the bombing of the Cassino Abbey in Italy and discusses the allies appointing a special unit to restore art works to their original origins, but fails to address the other side. There was too much assigning of blame and heroism in this movie. The reality is that ART and culture are victims of war and everyone who choses to go to war is responsible for the demise of beauty. You want to believe the premise of the Rape of Europa, but the reality is Hitler didn't steal art because he was rejected from art school. Hitler took everything of value-dignity, humanity, art, gold, wine, women, children, body & soul-from anyone and everyone because it was a way of amassing power. This is what dictators do.
Description of The Rape of Europa
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