'The Rape of Europa' Review

At Schloss Neuschwanstein in southern Bavaria, Captain James Rorimer supervises the safeguarding of art stolen from French Jews and stored during the war at the castle (April-May, 1945). Watch the trailer: http://www.moviefone.com/search/the%20rape%20of%20europa

The title is a pun based on an old painting of a Greek myth: http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/cgi-bin/WebObjects.dll/CollectionPublisher.woa/wa/work?workNumber=L898   This enthralling documentary tells how Nazi Germany raped Europe by looting art and furnishings from museums and families while destroying what they considered culturally or, more precisely, racially inferior. Hitler, a failed art student in his youth, took his revenge by having his henchmen criminally amass thousands of works from conquered countries for the glory of his empire and himself. Seeing photographs and newsreels of huge amounts of discovered loot is staggering. Just as the Nazis systematically rounded up people and sent them away for extinction, we see how collections were packed and delivered by train to their new homes or temporary storage. John Frankenheimer's move The Train with Burt Lancaster is based on this ignoble period.

   There are moral dilemmas presented as countries and private owners want their works returned to their rightful owners. To this date there are unresolved legal actions taken by nations and the descendants of owners who died during the war. Russia's advancing armies at the close of the war took many German works and they still believe they should keep them as retribution for their loss and suffering when Germany attacked them. 

   This documentary is a must for anyone interested in a little known part of history.