The new movie “Who’s afraid of Braunau?” questions the use of Hitler’s house for the police on the basis of an archive find. For an assignment from the Ministry of the Interior, however, it is clear why the police should be housed there instead of the Lebenshilfe: neo-Nazis are not allowed inside.
The presentation of the new film “Who’s Afraid of Braunau?” by Günter Schwaiger met with interest from the international press in Vienna on Monday. Readers of “Krone”, of course, pre-read that the filmmaker made an archive find as part of his research into Hitler’s birthplace, which he says suggests that Hitler himself wanted the house to be used for administrative purposes. And that is exactly what the federal government is planning, which is for the police to move in there. Schwaiger hopes the find will make a difference: “The Ministry of the Interior must distance itself. It needs to be reconsidered.’ He hopes that Braunau will decide.
The first plan was for the Lebenshilfe to move in. In the film, Hermann Feiner, who was head of department at the Ministry of the Interior at the time, explains why that didn’t work: “For us, the ideal solution would have been to use it for social and charitable purposes,” but that was difficult because: “A must being able to get in and out, it has to be artistic. Exhibits can be seen – we couldn’t have ruled out neo-Nazis coming in.” Historian Oliver Rathkolb of the responsible committee of the Ministry of the Interior sees the find as irrelevant anyway: “It is not a document, it is an inflated newspaper report that does not have the authenticity that the content really came from Hitler.”
And aside from the debate: how is the new film “Who’s Afraid of Braunau?” The “Krone” could see it in advance: Günter Schwaiger’s new documentary is not just about a building, but about the people around it. It is an unexciting documentary with a lot of background knowledge and, above all, very personal interviews. Many people from Braunau speak and tell what they have already experienced in connection with Hitler’s birthplace. Even Hitler admirers dare to be in front of the camera.
Particularly moving is the conversation with contemporary witness Lea Olczak, who says, “I can write a book about fear.” In the course of the film, the focus shifts to Schwaiger’s own family history, whereby the common thread ‘Hitlerhaus’ is somewhat lost. small. Incidentally, the find in the archive, which is now causing discussions, only concerns the last two minutes of the film…
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
