From Hilde With Love is a true story of Hilde Coppi who along with her husband Hans, were part of the WW2 German Resistance Group the Red Orchestra, so-called by the Nazis.
Set in 1942, Hilde a young dental assistant falls madly in love with Hans Coppi who is involved with the Red Orchestra. It’s not clear what Hans did for a living however he seemed to know his way around a signals machine that is an early transmitter of Morse Code.
They spend a glorious summer together with their friends in the German countryside but their attempts to reach the Russians and divulge Nazi plans of their push to Stalingrad comes awry when the Nazi’s arrive and arrest them.
Everyone in their group are taken away to prison and it’s only a matter of time before they will be sent to death by The Fuhrer.
Hilde is heavily pregnant by the time she is incarcerated and has the baby in prison. That alone is a realistic experience that will have parents watching with hands gripping the armrests.
The conditions are woeful but the resilience of Hilde is what gives you hope. Alas, it doesn’t eventuate. After one last meeting with Hans to meet his son, Hans Junior, Hans is taken away and executed.
Even after the uncompromising head guard Anneliese Kuhn provides a heartfelt reference to save Hilde from execution, it’s not enough.
This film doesn’t exploit the fundamental cruelty of the Gestapo and Nazi regime that some films do. Instead it’s very understated and allows you to make your own mind up. Another brilliant German film with similar pacing and qualities is “Other People’s Lives” from 2006 and set during the Cold War.
Having said that, the ‘matter of factness’ that the Nazi’s showed with their murderess intent still makes you shudder and the final scene….well it left all of us in the audience mouth agape and muttering, “what the f..k just happened?”
The actual output of the Red Orchestra was negligible by resistance standards in WW2. The only return message from the Russians was a one off “hello to you and your families”. It cost the group their lives.
If the subject matter isn’t your cup of tea, then I recommend watching it solely for the lead actor, Liv Lisa Fries who plays Hilde.
She is literally in every scene and now having read a little about Hilde’s life, she is perfect in the role playing an intelligent, empathetic and kind woman who despite the harshest of conditions, looked after and comforted others.
Fries shows an incredible range for someone who is only in her early 30’s and no doubt deserves every accolade she receives for the role.
In the final credits the voice of the 80 year old Hans Junior appears and gives a final homage to his brave parents. It’s a fitting way to end what is a grim story from WW2 that is powerfully represented. 8.5/10
Also released this week is a movie produced, directed and starring Michael Keaton. This is a fairly bog standard Hollywood crime story about an assassin who has dementia and is running out of time to get his son off a murder charge.
Its good popcorn fodder and you can’t help but like Michael Keaton can you? I loved him in The Other Guys. He’s very underrated as a comic actor. Anyway 7/10.
