Fascinating, but overly long ...

Bruno Ganz pulls off an unbelievably realistic and gripping portrayal of Adolf Hitler, and his final years as leader of Nazi Germany. Set in an underground bunker in Berlin, Downfall tells the story of the events which followed the Soviet onslought on the city, and the reaction of Hitler and his fellow Nazi officers to the impending collapse of their city. Some horrifying moments make the audience sit up and pay attention, but I found Downfall slightly dragging at times, and a distinct lack of a protagonist (excluding Hitler's secretary Traudl, who is caught in the middle of the terrible occurences), meant there were moments when I wished the Soviet soldiers would hurry up and kill them. Overall though, definately worth a watching solely because of Ganz's portrayal of Hitler, and an insight into the few defining moments which led to the collapse of one of history's greatest evils.