I saw this film a few years ago at a UCLA showing of Nazi-era German films. It's a big, fluffy blend of music, comedy and romance with several story lines, and is very well-crafted and entertaining. You forget you're watching a Nazi film until someone gives the occasional Hitler-salute, or someone speaks of "chopping up Englishmen," and then you're unpleasantly--if temporarily--jarred back into an awareness of the historical and political context of the film. Thus, it is a valuable springboard for reflections on the nature of mass entertainment, escapism and propaganda, both in Nazi Germany and one's own country, and also suggests (as has been focused upon in recent historical scholarship) that for the average German, life in the early years of the Third Reich wasn't all that "unusual" or ideological by modern standards. The elderly German man sitting in front of me in the theater was quite excited by the many cameo appearances of mid-20th century German entertainers--much as my parents would be delighted to uncover an old gem featuring Bogart, Hayworth, Abbott & Costello, etc. So, it's all very interesting.
Review of Request Concert
