Education for Death: The Making of the Nazi (1943)

Waste of time

Excellent, smart action film.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

This is a Disney cartoon made during the war years, though it's not the usual Mickey Mouse or Donald Duck style cartoon. Instead, Disney and other American cartoon studios made cartoons for propaganda purposes. The idea was to educate the public about why we are fighting as well as what life would be like if you lived with the enemy--the loss of freedom, the loss of free will and loss of democratic law. Some may see them today as heavy-handed or jingoistic, but the cause was just and they were very useful positive propaganda. If you hate these wartime films, then just get over it or don't watch them--but they are an important part of our history and I am glad that Disney has finally agreed to release them once again.This film is about a fictitious child born and raised in Nazi Germany. How the child is indoctrinated from an early age to devalue sympathy and see his leader as his hero are chronicled in this film very effectively. Essentially, the story you see is true as Germany was raising their children this way and it gave insight for the viewers to understand the Nazi mind. Through excellent production values and storytelling, the message is put across successfully.

I believe that part of what this short attempts to do is explain how citizens of such a modern and advanced nation as Germany could come to support a brutal and ultimately self-destructive regime. It began with a terrifying defeat, and when the nation was vulnerable, a strong leader arose to defend it against those 'enemies' who stood for the destruction of their values and their way of life. It followed that this strong leader demanded unquestioning support, even as he trampled the very things--tolerance, openness, individualism, creativity--that made the nation unique and prosperous. Those who opposed him were enemies deserving of nothing but their destruction. The parallels to current times are ignored at our own peril.

Watching this film for the first time, I was completely unprepared as to just how scary and graphic this film was going to be. I can see why this film is still banned and not allowed to be shown on television- it shows all Germans as horrible, hateful beasts, which isn't true. The scene in which the Bible changes into a copy of Mein Kamph and the crucifix changes into a sword and a swastika is especially frightening. It is an interesting film, however, it should only be viewed by older people, as it would frighten young children. If you manage to find a copy, see it; but be forewarned: make sure the toddlers are out of the room.

While most of Disney's cartoons are funny, this one was quite serious. It tells of how a boy named Hans is abducted into the Nazi way of life starting from kindergarten when he learns the familiar story of Sleeping Beauty only he learns the Nazi version of it where the wicked witch is democracy and Sleeping Beauty is German. I bet you can probably guess who the prince is. Later Hans is taught that the weak don't deserve to live and that Germans are the master race. I think Walt Disney depicts the evils of Nazism quite well in this short. The outside world was probably quite shocked about this when they saw it. An innocent child being brought up to be a Nazi who says nothing but what others want him to say, to think only the way others want him to think, and to do only what others want him to do. To top it all off, having to support Der Fueher (Hitler) and dying in battle just for him. Isn't that pathetic? The narrator says "By now Hans has completed his education. His education for death!" He was right about that too. This is quite a touching story and I think that everyone should get the chance to see it. Unfortunately this short is not "politically correct" enough to be aired on the Disney Channel or Toon Disney. I hope that one day Disney will show these rare cartoons on TV. You're probably wondering where I saw this cartoon. Well, I own a video of rare Disney shorts that I got from a collector.