Title
Leni Riefenstahl : a life / Jürgen Trimborn ; translated from the German by Edna McCown.
Uniform Title
Riefenstahl. English
Edition
1st American ed.
ISBN
9780865479760 (paperback)
0865479763 (paperback)
9780374184933
0374184933
Publication Details
New York : Faber and Faber, 2007.
Language
English
Language Note
Translated from the German.
Description
xii, 351, [24] pages of plates : illustrations ; 23 cm
Call Number
PN1998.3.R54 T7513 2007
Dewey Decimal Classification
791.4302/8092
Summary
Dancer, actress, mountaineer, and director Leni Riefenstahl's uncompromising will and audacious talent for self-promotion appeared unmatched--until 1932, when she met her future patron: Adolf Hitler. Best known for two films she made for him, Triumph of the Will and Olympia, Riefenstahl's demanding and obsessive style introduced unusual angles, new approaches to tracking shots, and highly symbolic montages. Despite her lifelong claim to be an apolitical artist, Riefenstahl's monumental vision of Germany's traditions and landscape served to idealize the cause of one of the world's most violent and racist regimes. Trimborn's revelatory biography celebrates this charismatic and adventurous woman, who lived to 101, while also taking on the myths surrounding her. With refreshing distance and detailed research, Trimborn presents the story of a stubborn and intimidating filmmaker who refused to be held accountable for her role in the Holocaust but continued to inspire countless photographers and filmmakers with her artistry. -- From publisher description.
Bibliography, etc. Note
Includes bibliographical references (pages 317-327) and index.
Preface: Approaching a myth. THE ASCENT. Berlin in the time of the Kaiser
First career steps
Star of Mountain Films
Embarking on a new career. FAME. "I was infected"
The Fuhrer's filmmaker
The transition to documentary films
Riefenstahl shapes the face of the Third Reich
Perfect bodies
Privileges of a state artist. THE FALL. A secret film project
Flight into the putatively apolitical
Not immune after all? THE NEW BEGINNING. Collapse and new beginning
Riefenstahl discovers a new world
The temporarily final career. CONCLUSION. The Riefenstahl Renaissance.
