Sultisz Nikoletta

The power of ideologies in Lore

In the following movie review the effect of ideologies – especially on children – will be
discussed on the basis of the German-Australian-British movie titled Lore. The paper will
demonstrate how the Nazi ideology influenced and brainwashed Germans and how they
processed the aftermath of the war and the disclosure of the atrocities committed during.

The movie takes place in Germany by the end of the war in spring , not long before the
collapse of the Nazi Empire. The protagonist of the movie is a teenage girl , Lore , whose
father comes home after his service in the war. It is soon revealed that Lore’s parents are not
ordinary in the sense that they were high-ranking SS members. After the fall of the Third
Reich , Nazis and Nazi collaborators had to face punishment, as they were hunted by the
Allied forces. Lore’s parents attempt to destroy every evidence of their involvement with the
Nazis and then decide to flee with the entire family,Lore’s twin brothers,sister and baby
brother,to the Black Forest.

Lore’s parents are portrayed in a negative way ; her father is aggressive,beating and
presumably raping her mother as well as murdering their family dog. Her mother is strict and
cold with her children, especially after the death of Hitler. The suicide of their Führer and the
surrender of Germany shocks her mother, increasing the indifference towards her children.
Understanding Hitler’s death as the end of the world shows how faithfully her mother
believed in the Nazi propaganda.

Despite the fact that Lore and her siblings were raised as Hitler-Jugends , Lore is not as
touched by the fall of Germany as she is concerned by the future of her family, particularly
after her father flees. Shortly after, her mother decides to turn herself in and leave her children
behind, ordering Lore not to forget who she is as she wants to ensure that her children remain
as she raised them , not questioning their parents’ deeds. She is also in the complete belief that
she has not done any wrong , saying she is not going to prison ,because that is for criminals.
Left as the head of the family ,Lore has to lead her siblings to their grandmother ,living 900
kilometres away. Given only a handful of jewellery and money for train tickets, they are
reliant on others throughout their journey.

During the movie, Lore gets more and more acquainted with the reality of the war. The
first time she has to question her beliefs and her parents’ morality is when she sees the
pictures of the concentration camps. The scene shows how many of the Germans try to live in
denial, stating that the pictures are fake and part of the American propaganda. The crucial
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moment of realisation for Lore is recognising her father on the Holocaust photos , after which
her personality becomes divided ; one is the Hitler-Jugend believing in the final victory and
the evil of Jews, greeting others with ‘Heil Hitler’ and staring at the physically disabled. The
other one is the teenage girl who has to process her parents’ sins and question everything she
has been taught.

This division is reflected in her relationship with a Jewish man, Thomas, who supports
them during their way. While she is sexually attracted to him and tries to seduce him , she
also expresses the disdain she feels about him , for instance by saying he is a ‘filthy Jew’. The
fact that someone who she was taught to be afraid of provides them food and saves them from
arrest creates a confusion in her. On the contrary , Lore’s siblings appear to be unconcerned
about Thomas being a Jew, since as being younger children, they either did not care or did not
fully understand the concept of Nazism.

Oddly enough , while Thomas supports Lore and her siblings , other Germans they
meet during their way exclusively help them for jewellery. The fact that the Germans Lore
thought to be her community do not support them and her “enemy” does, increases the
confusion in her. Especially , since they encounter with “their kind” as well, a faithful Nazi
matron ,having Hitler’s picture on the wall, being convinced he died because Germans broke
his heart. By this time Lore seems to be disillusioned with Nazism ,fleeing the woman’s
house, who only used her baby brother for getting food.

While the help of Thomas is emphasized ,by the end of the movie, his whole person
becomes dubious, since he has fake papers. However , once the tattooed numbers can be seen
on his arm , which ensures he has been to concentration camps. Moreover , he sometimes
appears to be threatening , especially when they first encounter with Lore, when she finds him
in the same house with a brutally raped woman’s corpse. The viewer can wonder why would
someone help so selflessly, particularly for people who oppressed his race. One reason could
be the baby, with whom Thomas could get food easily. Another could be, which I rather
favour that Thomas would like to make Lore realise , what she learnt about Jewish people is
wrong. If this is the case, Thomas succeeded , as we can see at the end of the movie, when
Lore rebels against her repressive and stern grandmother,who still believes in the innocence
of their parents.

Besides brainwashing people, a radical ideology as Nazism creates a certain

discrimination. While during the Third Reich Jewish people were extremely oppressed and
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tortured, after it’s fall children such as Lore and her siblings suffered and the Jewish were
positively discriminated. For instance , Lore and her siblings would not have been able to
arrive to Hamburg without Thomas, as he has Jewish papers and “Americans love Jews” like
he mentions in the movie as well. Hence , it can make the viewers wonder whether one
inequal and oppressive ideology creates another inequality or not. In my opinion, the reason
why a movie like Lore was long needed is partly this feature, that it shows the “other side”,
the treatment and hardship of the children of the Nazis, who are the victims of their parents
wrongdoings.