Steven Spielberg is one of the most recognized and successful directors of all time. He is known for his blockbuster yet intimate films such as ET, Jurassic Park, and Hook. He is one of the few directors who have made it big in both the blockbuster realm as well as more dramatic films. One of his most well-known dramatic films is the Liam Neeson starrer Schindler’s List.
The highlight of the war drama focussing on the Holocaust is Ralph Fiennes’ portrayal of Nazi soldier Amon Goth, who was known for his vicious and brutal killings during the Holocaust. The character got Fiennes an Academy Award nomination. The actor has since mentioned how going deep into the character made him sympathize with the Nazi criminal.
Steven Spielberg’s Schindler’s List
Steven Spielberg’s Schindler’s List has been regarded as one of the greatest films of all time. Its exploration of the brutal Holocaust and the hope amidst the violence through the kind act of Oskar Schindler has made it one of the most revered war films. It stars Liam Neeson as Oskar Schindler, a businessman who saved more than a thousand Jewish people from being sent to concentration camps.
Steven Spielberg was initially unsure about directing the film as he felt he was not mature enough to handle the theme. He approached multiple directors such as Roman Polanski, Martin Scorsese, and Sydney Pollack. Spielberg decided to direct it himself after noticing that Holocaust deniers were being seriously considered. He did not take a salary for the film as he considered it to be ‘blood money’. The film received a modest budget of $22 million and earned over $322 million at the box office.
The director won the Academy Award for Best Director for the film, which also won more Oscars such as Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Original Score.
Ralph Fiennes As Amon Goth
While the ongoing war and Adolf Hitler’s dictatorship are the main antagonists of Steven Spielberg’s Schindler’s List, it is represented in the form of Ralph Fiennes’ Amon Goth. Goth is the second lieutenant who maintains a business relationship with Liam Neeson’s Oskar Schindler, who bribes him to keep Jewish workers at his factory. Goth is a ruthless man, often seen hunting Jews for sport and even ordering a massacre of a Jewish town. He harasses and abuses his maid, and copes with his actions by eating and drinking alcohol.
Ralph Fiennes’ portrayal of Amon Goth has made the character one of the most despised antagonists of all time. In an interview with the New York Times, Fiennes mentioned that he understood the appeal of Nazi propaganda films and even ascribed obesity to Goth’s brutality,
“I’m not a psychologist, but I’m convinced the brutality he became addicted to was related to his obesity. He also became an alcoholic and an insomniac. My own pet theory is that he was so steeped in this brutality that unconsciously, as a kind of remedy or palliative, he had to stuff himself with food and drink to numb his sensibilities.”
Fiennes prepared intensely for the role, putting on over 25 pounds in weight and watching Nazi propaganda films such as Triumph Of The Will.
Also read: Ralph Fiennes Nearly Rejected $9.5B Franchise That Made Him a Legend for the Stupidest Reason
Ralph Fiennes Started Sympathizing With A Nazi
Ralph Fiennes also mentioned that as he delved deeper into the character, he began to sympathize with Amon Goth, saying,
“I felt a kind of sympathy for him. In a way, if you are involved in dehumanizing other people, you yourself become dehumanized…If you are playing a role, you are immersing yourself in thinking about that character — how he moves, how he thinks. In the end, he becomes an extension of your own self. You like him.”
He said that he was glad to have gotten out of the character and stepped onto something new. However, he still feels some aspects of Goth lingering in him.
“I think there was a price to pay for this one. When you’re investigating behavior that is that negative so intensely for three months, then you feel sort of peculiar because you might have at moments enjoyed it and at the same time you feel slightly soiled by it. It just throws up all kinds of question marks — about acting, about human behavior, about how all of that is probably a lot closer to the surface than we like to think.”
The character earned Fiennes an Academy Award as well as a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role.
Source: The New York Times
