Whatever Eva Braun may have seen in Adolf Hitler--a man who drove her to make two unsuccessful attempts on her life--she took her secrets with her to the grave. Yet even if Braun had lived to tell her side of the story, or had left behind more than a single, sparse journal, her tumultuous, fifteen-year relationship with the twentieth century's most reviled leader would remain fundamentally baffling: just how could any sane person love Hitler? At this point, Braun is so closely identified with the cruel and inexplicable nature of love that it's become something of a cliché to invoke her name in times of romantic confusion ("Even Hitler had a girlfriend," et cetera). It's no wonder, then, that a new biography of Eva Braun is making such waves in Germany. Written by Heike Görtemaker and published just last week, “Eva Braun: Life with Hitler” is a groundbreaking attempt to dismantle the prevailing ideas about the woman who was Hitler’s longtime companion—and, for forty hours, his wife.
Historically, Braun has been portrayed as an insipid and naïve but ultimately apolitical young woman. The British historian Hugh Trevor-Roper's account “The Last Days of Hitler” first cemented the idea of Braun as a vacuous "silly cow." Sixty years later, Angela Lambert’s biography, “The Lost Life of Eva Braun,” painted her as a well-meaning but gullible girl whose ideology extended only as far as her vanity table. In Oliver Hirschbiegel's 2004 film “Downfall,” Braun has a little more pluck--mostly, she just wants to party--but again, her greatest fault is her blind loyalty to the Fuhrer, not bloodthirsty anti-Semitism. As Görtemaker told the BBC, Braun is consistently depicted as one of two things: “a dull and naïve blonde, or a decent young girl who had the misfortune to fall in love with a monster.”
“Eva Braun: Life with Hitler,” may finally eradicate these ideas. Görtemaker, whose previous work includes a well-received biography of the German journalist Margret Boveri, tackles some of the more persistent Braun myths head-on. For instance, unlike other biographers, she rejects the assumption that Hitler and Braun did not have a normal sex life; the book even includes a story about a couch where they shared many an assignation--and where Neville Chamberlain later sat. The author also doesn’t buy the idea that Braun was anything less than a passionate believer in Nazism. “She was in the loop and knew what was going on. She was no mere bystander," Görtemaker explained to the Observer.
Adding to the book's considerable buzz is the fact that a film adaptation is already in the works. Michael Simon de Normier, an associate producer on last year's similarly themed “The Reader,” optioned the film rights last week, even though an English-language version of "Eva Braun: Life with Hitler" is not yet available stateside. (For the record, the book’s German publishers, C. H. Beck, say two publishing houses are currently bidding for U.S. rights.)
Until recently, the idea of portraying the fuhrer and his inner circle on film has been somewhat taboo. In his review of “Downfall,” A. O. Scott explains this reluctance: “Curiosity carries with it a sense of moral risk, as if understanding Hitler might be the fateful first step toward liking him." That's why the Hitlers and Eva Brauns we’ve seen on film have largely been caricatures—think of “The Producers,” for instance. But now, after “Downfall,” “Max” and even “Inglorious Basterds,” the Hitler taboo is slowly being lifted. One can argue over whether this is an entirely positive development—do these odious figures “deserve” so much thoughtful consideration?—but it’s a sea change nonetheless.
So now that Bruno Ganz has made it “safe” to play Hitler, the question of casting becomes inevitable. Bookslut nominates Cameron Diaz and Leonardo DiCaprio, but in my opinion he's too perennially boyish, Diaz too sunny and Californian. Diane Kruger was phenomenal as a German double agent in “Basterds,” but perhaps that makes her too obvious of a choice to play Braun. I'd suggest Evan Rachel Wood, who has the ideal combination of Aryan looks and the ability to play troubled characters. As for Hitler, Kenneth Branagh is old enough and even sort of looks the part (sorry, Kenneth), though at this point he may be a little sick of playing Nazis. Regardless of who is ultimately cast, we love the idea of agents rolling calls in a desperate bid to get their clients cast as Hitler and Braun.
