Don’t Be So Political is a monthly film series that engages with films through a political lens. Each screening is preceded by an expert Q&A. Hosted by Zach Wortzman
“Freedom… what for?”
In 1930s Germany, an actor rises with the Nazi party, playing Faust’s Mephistopheles on stage and in life.
Winner of the Best Foreign Picture Oscar in 1981, Mephisto guides its audience through the rise of fascism and its dire costs. Based on the book by Klaus Mann (Thomas Mann’s son), it traces the life story of famed German actor Gustaf Gründgens and his rise through the state theatre system in the 1930s. Many attribute Klaus Mann’s untimely death to the book’s publication. Similar to Grüdgens, director Istvan Szabo’s career soared after the release of the film, positioning him at the fore of the Hungary’s film industry. That is, until 2006 when, like the film’s eponymous character, Szabo was revealed to have advanced his career by informing against his colleagues to Hungary’s Communist Secret Police.
An electric performance by Klaus Maria Brandauer drives the film and perfectly plays Hendrick Hofgen’s struggle, shame, ambition, and narcissistic need for adulation. (ZACH WORTZMAN)