Hi, Hitler! The Nine Movie Nazis We Most Love To Hate To Love

By Rob Payne | Posted Under Seriously Random Lists | Comments (27)

Earlier today, we posted the trailer for the upcoming Space Nazis movie, Iron Sky, which I’ll definitely watch even if I am getting a wee bit tired of the recent factory-like production of ironic cinema. Making the Third Reich villains is too easy, and yet, always so satisfying. No matter what they do in the movie, even if they somehow garner your affection, their comeuppance is always deserved. Because they’re motherf*ckin’ Nazis, y’all. Doesn’t matter whether they’re from the dark side of the moon or the dark side of Hitler’s butthole. Yes, they deserve to die, and we hope they burn in hell.

But while all movie Nazis are equal, some movie Nazis are more equal than others. Below are The Nine Movie Nazis We Most Love To Hate To Love (enjoy?):

Ronald Lacey as Major Arnold Toht in Raiders of the Lost Ark

Ladislav Beran as Karl Ruprecht Kroenen in Hellboy

Ørjan Gamst as Herzog the lead Zombie Nazi in Dead Snow

Christoph Waltz as Colonel Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds

Alison Doody as Dr. Elsa Schneider in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

Ian McKellen as Richard Gloucester/King Richard in Richard III

Peter Sellers as Dr. Strangelove in Dr. Strangelove

Gregory Peck as Dr. Josef Mengele in The Boys From Brazil

Bruno Ganz as Adolf Hitler in Downfall

As a special treat, here’s the most metatastic of the Hitler Meme videos, as originally popularized because of Herr Ganz’s pitch-perfect performance of Der Fuhrer in the last days of his failed world domination campaign (again, enjoy?):

Rob Payne also writes the indie comic The Unstoppable Force, tweets on the Twitter @RobOfWar, and his ware can be purchased here (if you’re into that sort of thing). He can’t believe he almost missed the obvious joke and went with a ten count.

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Comments

Ralph Fiennes in Schindler's List! Sheesh, I thought he'd top it. I pardon you.

Posted by: jamiepants at January 26, 2012 12:11 PM

Those Downfall parodies are just delightful. Much like Colonel Landa.

Posted by: admin at January 26, 2012 12:16 PM

Amon Goeth is more the kind of guy I want off my screen ASAP. He's scary.

In that vein: Rupert Friend as Lt Kottler in The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Has the dubious honor of going from "omg he's hot" to "GO AWAY, GO AWAY, GO AWAY" in about 30 seconds. Amazing.

Posted by: Linda at January 26, 2012 12:17 PM

I think it's interesting that Nazisploitation is "back". In the 80s it was all about seeing a pair of titties get whipped, but that's only a click away these days.

Do we just need the comfort of a clear enemy? That shit is foggy now, right.

Posted by: emotionalpedant at January 26, 2012 12:22 PM

For sheer longevity, I have to give it up for Wolf Kahler, who played Col. Dietrich in Raiders. By my (rough) estimate, the guy's played a movie/TV Nazi about 30 times.

Plus his freaking name is "Wolf," which is much more intimidating than "Ronald."

Posted by: Pete at January 26, 2012 12:26 PM

No love for The Producers where it's always Springtime?

Posted by: Steve at January 26, 2012 12:27 PM

No love for The Producers where it's always Springtime?

That's who I thought of first too

Posted by: Fredo at January 26, 2012 12:49 PM

Laurence Olivier and his fabulous drill of destruction.

Posted by: klingonfree at January 26, 2012 1:12 PM

WHAAAAAT?!? Jeezuz Keeee-rist, do you even WATCH movies?

Sir Laurence Olivier, Szell, "Marathon Man." Did for the dentist what "Jaws" did for the beach.

Posted by: , at January 26, 2012 1:14 PM

I used to have really horrible nightmares involving Toht when I was a kid. It's the beady little eyes, I think. And that hat. Brr.

Posted by: figgy at January 26, 2012 1:30 PM

Good list.

Have to mention one big exclusion, though: Claude Rains and Leopoldine Konstantin in Hitchcock's Notorious!

Posted by: DarthCorleone at January 26, 2012 2:08 PM

Darth, I have to add, at your inspiration, Claude Rains' MOTHER! She of the long braid down her back, who reaches for her cigs as she gets out of bed and says to her son, "Ve are protected by ze enormity of your stupidity."

Posted by: klingonfree at January 26, 2012 2:15 PM

Hee, her last name is doody.

Posted by: Salad_Is_Murder at January 26, 2012 2:15 PM

I like the reference from A Time to Kill in there; it's one of my fave hangover movies.

Posted by: noodlestein at January 26, 2012 2:18 PM

"Springtime for Hitler and Germany..."

thanks ya'll, that is going to be stuck in my head for the rest of the day... thanks, thanks a lot...

Posted by: MRod at January 26, 2012 2:21 PM

Ha, Salad_is_Murder, my thoughts exactly!

Posted by: Jelinas at January 26, 2012 2:27 PM

My darling husband has always said that if the Nazis had not been real, Hollywood would have had to invent them. They are pure evil and they are whiter than white. They're the perfect bad guys because there's not a single person on the planet who can complain that they're a bad stereotype of a minority.

Oh, and I'd like to nominate Peter Graves from Stalag 17. Traitor.

Posted by: BWeaves at January 26, 2012 2:38 PM

Sir Ian was also a Nazi (in disguise!)in Apt Pupil. Sure, the movie was s*it, but like always, Sir Ian was outstanding. And incredibly menacing.

Posted by: Bert at January 26, 2012 2:50 PM

I've watched Richard III with Ian McKellen at least a dozen times and I never got a Nazi vibe from him. Wait a second, does that make me a Nazi

Posted by: Whipple "Whip" Hoxworth at January 26, 2012 3:50 PM

klingonfree >> Leopoldine Konstantin is the name of the actress who played his mother. (I had to look it up.) :- )

Posted by: DarthCorleone at January 26, 2012 3:56 PM

Hitler Learns of the American Psycho Remake turned my head on those Downfall videos, it's pretty much the only one I truly like.

Also echoing Bert's sentiments on Apt Pupil. Not a great movie, but features some great scenes. McKellen owns that movie!

Posted by: MurderBot at January 26, 2012 7:02 PM

Nah, Richard of Gloucester wasn't a Nazi. Mosleyite, probably, but even that's a stretch. Militarist and power-mad, of course, but the usual signs of National Socialism weren't there.

And Ganz's portrayal of Hitler was amazing. I've watched Downfall several times, and still can't get over how much he looks and acts like the Old Teppichfresser.

Posted by: The Wanderer at January 26, 2012 7:09 PM

Hitler was just a misunderstood artist. Rejection is the most brutal of human conditions and young Adolf underwent the metamorphosis into the monster of our historical lore by his rejection from art school. See him his happiest and read all about it at http://dregstudiosart.blogspot.com/2010/02/happy-little-hitler.html

Posted by: Brandt Hardin at January 26, 2012 8:42 PM

Ah Dr. Elsa Shneider. "This is how Austrians say goodbye".
Between that and "Edelweiß" Hollywood pop-culture has significantly impacted my social interactions with Americans.
Bruno Ganz is a phenomenal actor. If any of his other films are available to you with subtitles I highly recommend you check them out.

Posted by: cinekat at January 27, 2012 7:58 AM

f@k polanski but Wilm Hosenfeld in the pianist was sublime

rolfe the nazi messengerboy in the sound of music

rommel "i read your book!" in patton

double f@k tom hanks, and sorry i cant remember the character names, but the nazi who kills the GI with the knife while the coward translator just pisses himself, absolutely terrifying

Posted by: will at January 27, 2012 9:09 AM

No hate for Major Hockstedder and General Burkhalter? Damn, even Klink and Schultz hated them.

Posted by: kirbyjay at January 27, 2012 10:06 AM

@cinekat: I couldn't agree more. Der Himmel Uber Berlin is in my all time top five list of great movies.

Posted by: PaddyDog at January 27, 2012 11:21 AM

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Hi, Hitler! The Nine Movie Nazis We Most Love To Hate To Love

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