Instead of Triumph of the Will there's surprisingly little politics and propaganda going on in this first part of Riefenstahl's Olympia. Riefenstahl is documenting the athletics in the Olympic Stadium, and yes, Hitler is there, but that's about it. Sure, the German athletes are the best and heroic, and there's a piece in there when the commentator says something like 'the best white European runners against the black giants', but that's about it.
Jesse Owens was the star of this Olympics in many ways, and Riefenstahl isn't reluctant to show his big smiles after winning yet another gold medal. Although a lot can be frowned upon in Germany in those days, 'Olympia' isn't as charged as many people believe it to be.
Having said that, this first part of Olympia is basically just showing us who won the medals in the Olympic Stadium, and although some of the images are great and there's a beautiful use of slow-motion, it's not really that interesting...
6/10.
Jesse Owens was the star of this Olympics in many ways, and Riefenstahl isn't reluctant to show his big smiles after winning yet another gold medal. Although a lot can be frowned upon in Germany in those days, 'Olympia' isn't as charged as many people believe it to be.
Having said that, this first part of Olympia is basically just showing us who won the medals in the Olympic Stadium, and although some of the images are great and there's a beautiful use of slow-motion, it's not really that interesting...
6/10.