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Olympia

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EntityQ158069· pop 34· linked from 118 articles

Also known as Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations, Olympia Part Two: Festival of Beauty

1938 black-and-white Nazi propaganda documentary film, written, directed and produced by Leni Riefenstahl, about the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin

Film · TMDB

6.9

Starting with a long and lyrical overture, evoking the origins of the Olympic Games in ancient Greece, Riefenstahl covers twenty-one athletic events in the first half of this two-part love letter to the human body and spirit, culminating with the marathon, where Jesse Owens became the first track and field athlete to win four gold medals in a single Olympics.

Released: 1938-04-21127 minDir: Leni RiefenstahlDocumentaryBudget: $550,000Part of: Olympia Collection

Cast

  • David Albritton as Self - High Jump, USA (uncredited)
  • Arvo Askola as Self - 10000 Metres, Finland (uncredited)
  • Jack Beresford as Self - Carries British Flag (uncredited)
  • Erwin Blask as Self - Hammer Throw, Germany (uncredited)
  • Sulo Bärlund as Self - Shot Put, Finland (uncredited)
  • Ibolya Csák as Self - High Jump, Hungary (uncredited)

Themes

  • nazi
  • sports
  • olympic games
  • national socialism
  • national socialist party
  • beauty
  • xenophobia
  • woman director
  • nsdap (nazi party)
  • professional athlete

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Ratings

IMDb

7.7/10

5,359 votes

Rotten Tomatoes

89%

Year
1938
Runtime
111 min
Genres
Documentary, Sport
Rated
Not Rated
Awards
2 wins

via OMDb · IMDb

Key facts

Directed by
Leni Riefenstahl
Written by
Leni Riefenstahl
Produced by
Leni Riefenstahl
Cinematography
Paul Holzki
Edited by
Leni Riefenstahl
Music by
Herbert Windt Walter Gronostay Richard Strauss
Production company
Olympia-Film
Distributed by
Tobis
Release date
20 April 1938 ( 1938-04-20 )
Running time
226 minutes
Country
Germany
Language
German
Budget
2.35 million ℛ ︁ ℳ ︁

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Duration
226
Image
Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1988-106-29, Leni Riefenstahl bei Dreharbeiten.jpg
Show 5 more facts
publication date
1938-01-01
title
Olympia
public domain date
2107-01-01
review score
80%
Commons category
Olympia (1938 film)
Sources (11)

via Wikidata · CC0

~7 min read

Article

Olympia is a 1938 German propaganda and documentary film written, directed and produced by Leni Riefenstahl, which documented the 1936 Summer Olympics, held in the Olympic Stadium in Berlin during the Nazi period. The film was released in two parts: Olympia 1. Teil — Fest der Völker (Festival of Nations) (126 minutes) and Olympia 2. Teil — Fest der Schönheit (Festival of Beauty) (100 minutes). The 1936 Summer Olympics torch relay, as devised for the Games by the secretary general of the Organizing Committee, Dr. Carl Diem, is shown in the film.

Olympia is controversial due to its political context and propaganda value. However, the techniques Riefenstahl employed are almost universally admired and had a lasting influence on film and television coverage of sport events. Olympia appears on many lists of the greatest films of all time, including Time magazine's "All-Time 100 Movies".

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