Themes: Political Unrest, Assassination Plots, Totalitarian States
Main Cast: Brad Davis, Madolyn Smith, Ian Richardson
Release Year: 1990
Country: US
Run Time: 97 minutes
Plot
Inspired suave aristocrat Col. Claus von Stauffenberg's ingenious plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler during the waning days of World War II, director Lawrence Schiller's historical war drama traces the remarkable events that unfolded as the Third Reich's Operation Valkyrie emergency plan was implemented on July 20, 1944. Could World War II have been stopped before the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki? A group of senior army officials have decided to turn on their führer, but is their plan doomed from the very moment of conception? A strategy meeting is set to take place at Hitler's Wolfsschanze (Wolf's Lair). There, the tyrannical German leader will be completely vulnerable to attack by the very people he trusts most - his own officers. In order to succeed, von Stauffenberg and his men will need to make some serious sacrifices. Later, as the plot gets underway, fighting continues raging all across Europe, and the men wait patiently for the perfect moment to strike. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Harry Lange - Art Director, Lawrence Schiller - Director, Bernard Gribble - Editor, David L. Wolper - Executive Producer, Bernie Sofronski - Executive Producer, Laurence Rosenthal - Composer (Music Score), Neno Pecur - Production Designer, Freddie Francis - Cinematographer, Alfred R. Kelman - Producer, Steven Elkins - Screenwriter, Mark Wolper - Supervising Producer
“The Plot to Kill Hitler” is a historical recreation of the 1944 attempt by several German High Command Officers to assassinate Adolf Hitler and take control of the German government. Lead by Wehrmacht Colonel Count von Staufenberg, this group of brave men managed to plant a bomb in Hitler’s battlefield headquarters. By sheer luck, Hitler survived the blast and the SS quickly arrested and executed all those involved in the affair.
The film is historically inaccurate in one aspect—Hitler's involvement in astrology. One scene has him looking over astological charts, which some people believe about the Nazi leader. Most historians, however, regard this as false.[citation needed]
