Response to Triumph of the Will

This movie was very informative on how propaganda can really change the way people think. This film was very impactful because it showed how even the director of the film, Leni Riefenstahl, believed that this film was a documentary and not a propaganda film. When people do not even know they are being tricked or deceived then it becomes very dangerous. When this happens people believe the ideas in their heads are their own and then they act on those ideas not knowing of the consequences. There were many small details that made this propaganda film so successful at the time. One thing that Riefenstahl did was make Hitler seem larger than life. Every time he was filmed the camera was below him. This made the viewer see Hitler as a man of power. The film also created the picture of a mass following of the Nazi party. Many shots had hundreds to thousands of Hitler supporters in the background. This makes the people watching the film feel like they should be following the crowd. The speeches in this film also create an environment of intense environment where people hear new information and see support for it. I agree that Riefenstahl did groundbreaking work for women and made a place for herself in the film world. However, the way she did that was not correct and brought harm to other people. This film is very important to show students because it shows what propaganda looks like and how it can be avoided in the future.