Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Valkyrie: A Review

On Saturday, we watched Valkyrie starring Tom Cruise. I'm not a big fan of his, but I found this movie riveting.

Since we already knew the plot & the outcome, there had to be something else to hold our attention so effectively. You could call it character x 2.

That is, the characters themselves were fascinating -- their motives for getting involved in the plot to kill Hitler, their reactions to changing circumstance, even their approach to their own deaths. But through all this ran the thread of the character of each individual.

I guess one reason this struck me is that honor seems to be the major theme of the film. You can see how each character views honor in terms of his own integrity AND in terms of the oath he took to give his life in service to the Führer.

One aspect of the movie that bothered me was its representation of Field Marshal Keitel. He may have been the arrogant prima donna that the film suggests, but I have a soft spot in my heart for him after reading the memoirs of WWII that he wrote while awaiting execution at Nuremburg.

I recommend Valkyrie as an exercise in ethical discernment for the Christian Martialist. It also serves as an example of the doctrine of interposition -- something to consider if and when we find ourselves ruled by evil tyrants.

5 comments:

The Warrior said...

I really wanted to see this movie, but haven't yet. I will review it myself when I do!

Why did you like Keitel, btw? Similar reasons why I can sympathize with Rommel (even though I despise the German cause).

Spencer

dlr said...

Great movie! Hey, have you seen Defiance yet?

Craig Mutton said...

Warrior,

I sympathized with Keitel because he seemed to be a soldier of the old, Prussian school. He served his country above & beyond politics.

He also gave insight in the German High Command's frustration with Hitler, who kept committing military resources to country after country while the Wehrmacht was still short on men & materiel.

He said, for instance, that blitzkrieg was a tactical development by the military because of their lack of heavy bombers. The Wehrmacht was always playing catchup to Hitler's ambition.

DLR,

Have not seen Defiance yet, but it's on the Netflix queue.

The Warrior said...

Ah, I see. Then, you might enjoy the book I am reading right now and will review when I am finished, No Less Than Victory by Jeff Shaara. Obviously I cannot and will not vouch for it all yet, but so far it is excellent, as were the first two in the trilogy.

Spencer

Stephen said...

This was exactly why I recommend this movie!
I really appreciated Staufenberg's commitment to principle over "patriotism".

"I am a soldier. I fight for my country. But this is not my country."