The Bunker

The Bunker
Directed by	George Schaefer
Produced by	David Susskind Diana Kerew
Written by	James O'Donnell (author) Uwe Bahnsen(screenwriter) John Gay(screenwriter)
Starring	Anthony Hopkins Richard Jordan Cliff Gorman Susan Blakely
Distributed by	CBS Time-Life Productions
Release date(s)	January 27, 1981
Running time	154 min.
Language	English

The Bunker is a 1981 CBS television film, Time/Life production and HBO Video release based on the book of the same name. The movie makes significant deviations from James O'Donnell's book--published in 1978. The deviations are mainly due to an effort to clarify the events, and allowing the actors license to interpret some of the dialogue he recorded. The film opens in 1945 with O'Donnell gaining entry to the Führerbunker by bribing a Russian sentry with a pack of cigarettes.

The most noteworthy legacy of the film was Anthony Hopkins' portrayal of Adolf Hitler, for which he won an Emmy. Actors on the set claimed his performance was so good that those playing German soldiers snapped to attention whenever Hopkins came onto the set, even if he wasn't in character.

The interpretations of the events by the actors differ in many ways with the traditional accounts. For example, during the final meeting between Hitler and Albert Speer, Hopkins adopts a sarcastic tone and gestures (including mock applause) that suggest that Hitler was already aware of Speer's betrayal, even though he uses the exact words recounted by the witnesses. This became a fairly controversial scene due to a perception in some circles that the resemblance to Jesus Christ's legendary foreseeing of Judas's betrayal was intentional. These accusations were consistently denied, as were reports regarding a rumored on-set romance between Piper Laurie (Magda Goebbels) and Cliff Gorman (Joseph Goebbels).

Also, the movie constantly shifts the point-of-view character, but sometimes in an impossible manner. For example, Dr. Werner Haase is used in this manner, even though he was never interviewed (having died later in 1950). Likewise, two scenes are written from the viewpoint of Hitler's cook, Constanze Manziarly, and in one scene, Manziarly actually has a flashback. However, Manziarly disappeared while escaping the bunker, so neither O'Donnell nor any other person was able to interview her or get her viewpoint.

Ironically, given O'Donnell's work on the breakout, the movie ends just as the groups are leaving the bunker and there is never any explanation given for the flamboyant caviar scene.

In a short scene at the beginning of the movie, a younger O'Donnell is played by actor James Naughton. O'Donnell himself provided brief voice-over narrations at both the beginning and end of the film.

The Cast

• Anthony Hopkins as Adolf Hitler
• Richard Jordan as Albert Speer
• Cliff Gorman as Joseph Goebbels
• James Naughton as James P. O'Donnell
• Michael Lonsdale as Martin Bormann
• Piper Laurie as Magda Goebbels
• Susan Blakely as Eva Braun
• Martin Jarvis as Johannes Hentschel
• Michael Kitchen as Rochus Misch
• Robert Austin as Walter Wagner
• Andrew Ray as Otto Günsche
• Yves Brainville as Heinz Guderian
• Michael Culver as Wilhelm Mohnke
• Julian Fellowes as Nicolaus von Below
• Frank Gatliff as Ernst-Günther Schenck
• Terrence Hardiman as Hermann Fegelein
• Edward Hardwicke as Dieter Stahl
• Karl Held as Hans Baur
• David King as Hermann Göring
• Sarah Marshall as Traudl Junge
• John Paul as Wilhelm Keitel
• Morris Perry as Werner Haase
• Pam St. Clement as Constanze Manziarly
• John Sharp as Theodor Morell
• Michael Sheard as Heinrich Himmler
• Tony Steedman as Alfred Jodl
• Peggy Frankston as Margarete Speer

External links

• The Bunker at the Internet Movie Database