Bonhoeffer

It is more than a biographic documentary. Or an admirable history lesson . It is a Christian portrait about the fair relation front to evil. It is the evolution of a young man discovering the life in its essence and defining, in simple - precise manner, his duty about it. It is a story about courage, sacrifice and consciense.

No doubts, many films about Bonhoeffer.

This seems special for the wise manner to remind basic priorities defining us , offering, off course , a suggestion more than a model.

In short, useful sounds real fair. Because, against illusions, the challenges of his time are less different by ours.

Great, short overview of one of my heroes in life.

I am pleased to see this documentary (2003 by writer-director Martin Doblmeier) and thankful for his balanced approach to let the voice of this Activist Christian teacher and constructive Theologian impact those who need to know his Pacifist Theology and Political Protest. He is not only a part of the Barmen Declaration framers who objected to NAZI takeover of post-WW I Germany but also a martyr whose writings (Christian life and orthodox Protestant doctrine) on Discipleship (Nachfolge) and Ethics still impact Protestant theologians and Social Ethical dissenters. Highly recommend this B & W / color archive interviews and contextual footage of the Holocaust and the aftermath / devastation of defeat of Third Reich / Hitlerism.

I've watched a number of documentaries lately and am often amazed at the stories of history past, but the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer moved my heart so deeply that I will struggle to articulate my response to the film. I am struck by the conviction and courage of Dietrich. His insight on the scriptures, his sincere honesty, and his life's example to the Christian community are inspiring.

This film gave me a better understanding of what it must have been like to be a citizen in Germany during the first half of the twentieth century than anything else I've experienced. This explanation of the chain of events that led to brutal violence toward the Jewish people in Europe as well as the moral examination of the Christian response to the socio-political position of Nazi Germany answered so many of the questions I've always asked. "How could such a majority of the Germans be persuaded to support the causes of the Third Reich?" "What motivated Germans to act with such hatred?" and "What were Christians thinking and doing during this time?" The only reason I did not give the film a rating of 10 was because the person I watched the film with fell asleep so I wish it would have captured that person's attention as it did mine. I pray that the story is spread to many others either through this film or perhaps a major Blockbuster style account of these events. The good news that Bonhoeffer believed in so completely and the God he gave his life to offer so much more hope to an audience that cries out for the answer to the question "Why, God?" than a story like "Life is Beautiful" ever could. Movie producers everywhere: "Listen to the story of Bonhoeffer and watch this film".

This documentary reviews the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer with the focus on the relationship between his religious beliefs and his personal actions. Factually, there's little in the movie that you could not get from Google. Bonhoeffer was one of a minority of Christian leaders in Germany who publicly and privately opposed the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party. What the film does is anecdotally present the growth of Bonhoeffer's theology from the conventional Lutheranism of his upbringing into a kind of social activism in which the actions of one's life are what bring one to Christ. The defining moment is when Bonhoeffer arrives in New York, intending to teach at Union Seminary, only to realize "one who believes does not flee." The film notes the irony that while Bonhoeffer did not like Reinhold Niebuhr, by the end of his life he was living the kind of social activism preached by Niebuhr.

The film itself is well-made and follows a standard documentary format, with period films, stills and interviews with surviving friends and family. Significant passages from Bonhoeffer's writing are mixed into the narrative description.

Bonhoeffer was a pastor, teacher and theologian. His life was not exciting in the conventional sense, although he did some spying against the Nazis that must have been nerve racking. And much of this film is spent relating belief and action. The question asked and answered for him was a simple one: To what extent are our actions the consequence of our beliefs? It's the question we are left to ponder for ourselves.