With the Red Army approaching Berlin, Adolf Hitler (Alec Guinness) encases himself in a bunker with his staff and confidantes. Oblivious to impending defeat, he plots Germany's resurgence while threatening vengeance on his less-loyal colleagues. Mistress Eva Braun (Doris Kuntsmann) is too self-absorbed to challenge him, yet even she feels the Fuhrer's wrath. His generals and followers desert him, with only Joseph Goebbels (John Bennett) and Martin Bormann (Mark Kingston) remaining loyal. Trapped between, the Fuhrerbunker becomes a living tomb for everyone.
Based on Gerhardt Boldt's memoir, Hitler: The Last Ten Days desperately wants to convince viewers of its realism. Journalist Alistair Cooke opens with a tedious narration of Nazism's rise and fall, while historian Hugh Trevor-Roper provides a signed statement of authenticity! To further convince viewers, director Ennio de Concini frequently incorporates documentary footage for context and ironic contrast with the Fuhrer's otherworldly rantings. The renderings seem accurate, yet Hitler has a lifeless feel it only fitfully transcends.
De Concini competently revisits scenes familiar from Downfall and a million history books. Hitler directs imaginary armies on maps and broods over Albert Speer's futuristic city, oblivious to the enclosing Red Army. We have the familiar scenes of suicide, reckless decadence and eleventh-hour treachery: Hitler's aides Goebbels and Himmler betray him, SS Major Fegelein (Julian Glover) deserts, and even Eva disappoints Hitler. The difference is De Concini's darkly humorous tinge, playing scenes like Hitler and his staff debating suicide methods as a ghastly joke.
Another difference is the film's emphasis on Hitler's almost banal humanity. While given to self-pitying rants and megalomania, Hitler makes cheery small talk with Eva Braun and his followers. Between explosions he's almost likeable, an odd but effective treatment. When aviatrix Hannah Reitsch (Diane Cilento) makes a last-second visit, she's struck learning of his attachment to Eva, having thought him above sex. Indeed, Hitler: The Last Ten Days makes the Fuhrer approachable.
Alec Guinness matches this with a wonderful performance. Typically chameleon-like, Guinness affects the raspy timbre (oddly enough) of his Fagin while bearing surprising resemblance to Hitler. He's equally effective as raging madman, deluded dreamer and friendly confidante. It's a characterization few could pull off: where Bruno Ganz's Hitler is a force of nature, Guinness's is a subdued man fighting impinging reality, the actor finding relatable shades even in this monster.
If Guinness impresses, he's a one-man show. Hitler's international cast is stuck enacting ciphers. Simon Ward (The Three Musketeers) plays the nominal hero, an adjutant trapped in the Fuhrerbunker, but he's so bland we don't care about him. Dora Kunstman is a boring Eva Braun. Italian stars Gabriele Ferzetti and Adolfo Celli appear among Hitler's General Staff; Joss Ackland, Julian Glover and Mark Kingston impersonate other figures. Only Diane Cilento (Hombre) makes an impression as the starry-eyed Hannah Reitsch.
Thanks to Alec Guinness and unexpected humor, Hitler: The Last Ten Days surpasses swastika schlock like The Bunker, with its ghastly Anthony Hopkins performance. But it's still slow-paced, stiff and ultimately unsatisfying.