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About this movie

Genres:
Drama
Language:
English
Running time:
1:45:19
Partner rating:
GREEN
Released:
Quality:
480 (DVD equivalent)

Cast & Crew

Cast

  1. Harvey Keitel Maj. Steve Arnold
  2. Stellan Skarsgard
  3. Stellan Skarsgård Wilhelm Furtwangler
  4. Moritz Bleibtreu Lt. David Wills
  5. Birgit Minichmayr Emmi Straube
  6. Oleg Tabakov Col. Dymshits
  7. Ulrich Tukur Helmut Rode
  8. Hanns Zischler Rudolf Werner
  9. August Zirner Capt. Ed Martin
  10. Robin Renucci Capt. Vernay
  11. R. Lee Ermey Gen. Wallace
  12. Frank Leboeuf
  13. Armin Rohde
  14. Jed Curtis
  15. Daniel Whire
  16. Rinat Shaham

Directors

  1. Istvan Szabo
  2. István Szabó

Producers

  1. Yves Pasquier

Writers

  1. Ronald Harwood

Taking Sides

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Trailer for Taking Sides

Set in Germany in 1946, Taking Sides tells the story of the investigation of Wilhelm Furtwängler (Stellan Skarsgård), the renowned conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic and Vienna Philharmonic orchestras, by the American occupying army. Major Steve Arnold (Harvey Keitel) has been told by his superiors that they want Furtwängler convicted of being a willing participant in the crimes of the Hitler regime, by virtue of his supposed support for and... Set in Germany in 1946, Taking Sides tells the story of the investigation of Wilhelm Furtwängler (Stellan Skarsgård), the renowned conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic and Vienna Philharmonic orchestras, by the American occupying army. Major Steve Arnold (Harvey Keitel) has been told by his superiors that they want Furtwängler convicted of being a willing participant in the crimes of the Hitler regime, by virtue of his supposed support for and support from the Hitler government. They haven't got the time or resources to go after every ex-Nazi, so they want Furtwängler, as the biggest cultural target they can hit. Arnold does his loud, boorish best to first humiliate and then attack the conductor over the supposed favoritism that he was shown by Hitler, Goering, Himmler, et al. and his conducting of a concert at the 1934 Nuremberg rally and at Hitler's 53rd birthday. Arnold finds, to his eventual distress but not dissuasion, that nothing is as simple as he would like to make it. His civilian secretary, Emmi Straube (Birgit Minichmayr), a concentration camp survivor whose father was part of the German Army plot to kill Hitler, and Lt. David Wills (Moritz Bleibtreu), a German-born Jew representing the War Crimes Tribunal, keep trying to remind Arnold that life and politics in Germany only deteriorated gradually after 1933, and in ways that couldn't always be anticipated by those who were there. Germans who chose not to leave weren't necessarily casting their lot with Hitler, but with protecting what was decent or even great about Germany, including her orchestras and music. Arnold knows nothing about music and even less about Germany and her people, and won't be deterred from his goal. Wills and Straube wish to resign from working with him, until they realize that they're facing the same choice that Furtwängler faced -- to leave a horrendous situation and have no way of affecting its conduct or outcome, or remain and do their best to stand up for decency and truth. In the process of doing that, they find out that Furtwängler is not only a great artist -- which they knew already -- but a great and brave man, who also has his flaws. The latter include an outsized ego that may have caused him to participate a little too willingly at times in the dangerous game he played of maintaining the excellence of Germany's musical institutions while protecting them (and also many musicians) from the worst ravages of the Nazi regime, at the same time also keeping lesser, more compliant figures from usurping his control.

Reviews by Rotten Tomatoes

Scored 'fresh' by Rotten Tomatoes

73%Tomatometer score: 73% positive reviews from professional critics.

percent positive reviews

  1. Negative review
    Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer Schematic, didactic, and most of all, in the case of Keitel, woefully miscast.
  2. Negative review
    Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post The notions of the good man's complicity through inertia ... are ones that have been more powerfully explored before.
  3. Negative review
    Michael Booth, Denver Post We're asked to jump into the combatants' arguments with no background about either one, no reason to care if Skarsgard sweats or Keitel rages. Full review External link
  4. Positive review
    Jane Sumner, Dallas Morning News The talk in this moral debate smokes with provocative drama and actors of weight. Full review External link
  5. Positive review
    Tom Dawson, BBC The acting honours here -- and the main reason to see the film -- belong to Skarsgård's impressive performance as the bewildered yet still defiant scapegoat, who can't believe his own downfall. Full review External link
  6. Positive review
    Richard Nilsen, Arizona Republic Brilliantly acted and written, Taking Sides overcomes any shortcoming of its transition from stage to screen.
  7. Positive review
    Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times The movie is both interesting and unsatisfying. Full review External link

Read more reviews on Rotten Tomatoes

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