John Rabe: an enemy of many becomes a hero of some

Florian Gallenberger

John Rabe is an old-fashioned war melodrama replete with all the horrors that "sane "people do to those they deem their enemy.

In 1937 John Rabe, "The Good German of Nanking." was a middle-aged, business man, a self proclaimed Nazi who worked tirelessly to save thousands of civilian Chinese from the Rape of Nanking. He achieved this goal by assisting thousands of Chinese civilians to enter the sprawling International Safety Zone
Estimates go as high as 250,000.

This historical event and the heroism of Rabe, the self proclaimed Nazi, doesn't register much outside of Germany,


Rabe appears to have no understanding of the nature of the Japanese menace or of the Nazi party he belongs to. But when evil rears its head, he cannot in good conscience betray the trust his workers have placed in him.

One of the most startling images here is Rabe's brainstorm to use a giant Nazi flag to deflect Japanese bombers away from desperate civilians crammed into the Siemens grounds. The idea of anyone using a Nazi flag for protection from aggressors is certainly new to World War II movies! the other is the sight of human heads on a wooden ledge, the participatory evidence of a competition to see who could accumulate the most number: the image of blood dripping from multiple heads and necks is one I won't forget.

A 134-minute film, with a clear message. Sometimes, under extreme circumstances, people do the right thing.

Currently P\laying in a limited number of theaters.