Several films, adapted to guide viewers on certain topics, were commissioned by the Nazi state before the outbreak of the war. The most important in this category was the "Zeitfilm" style aviation film created by Carl Ritter: "Pour Le Merite" (1938), [Pour Le Merite - for excellence], named after the highest decoration of heroism in Imperial Germany.
"Pour Le Merite" was a founding cultural event, in which, as a matter of fact, all of German history was rewritten, from the end of the First World War until Hitler came to power, in a manner consistent with Nazi ideology. The film deals with a group of former fighter pilots, who according to prominent biographical characteristics are from the flying circus, headed by the commander of the Squadron, whose character is modeled on the biography of Herman Goering.
Goering' name in the film is Frank. He leads his men after the war to revolt against the ruling regime of Democrat Weimar, whom he publicly despises. Out of the hardships of existence the pilots join the small Nazi party. Their struggle is successful, Hitler comes to power, and at the end they see the new German Air Force, which they command.
The film depicts "civil politics as a continuation of the war in other ways" and scenes of violations of the law are presented in it as inevitable, due to the rule of the corrupt left.
The film was described as "the purest Nazi film". At its premiere in Berlin in December 1938, Hitler watched with Carl Ritter by his side, Goering and Goebbels, and outside the cinema hall stood a guard of honor of veterans. Apart from the great box office success, the film was also recommended for viewing by young people, and was watched by millions of teenagers as part of the compulsory screenings held for "Hitler Youth".
Carl Ritter was Adolf Hitler's personal favorite. He congratulated him publicly, describing the film as "a great success, the best film in history so far." The commander of the SS Heinrich Himmler congratulated Carl Ritter on his achievements in the film with warm words. He complimented him on his ability to portray living and believable figures and on reenacting the period before the Nazis came to power, in which Germany was humiliated.
Even outside of Germany, "Pour Le Merite" was considered a great success. An American film critic noted that although non-Nazi audiences would be more interested in the first half, "it is exceptionally made."
The film is based in part on the true experiences of the "Flying Circus" pilots at the end of World War I and after. It begins in the last months of the war in 1918 and in the first half include exciting aerial battle scenes. The euphoria is at its peak and is displayed, among other things, in the festive hospitality of a captive British pilot, who escapes because he is not guarded.
Later, in preparation for the surrender of Germany, the feelings of disintegration, failure, disappointment and anger are expanded. After the ceasefire, the commander and some of the pilots, all with the prestigious Medal, refuse to hand over their planes to the Allies and burn them, in the midst of the end-of-war celebrations, in a series of dramatic scenes that take place in the middle of the film.
The second half begins with the failed attempts of the squadron commander, Frank, to integrate into the capitalist economy of the Weimar Republic, which is controlled by the occupation authorities. The British pilot who escaped is one of the new regime's heads, where military skills are of no value. This section includes long scenes of Frank's meetings with various businessmen in restaurants and offices, each time his business initiative fails more and he is less suited to the economic reality. Various attempts to rehabilitate German aviation through the gliding sport have been only partially successful, given the obstacles posed by the government. The group continues to meet during the Weimar period and the veterans' fraternity is preserved. They become members of the Nazi party.
The pilots gather at a lone farmhouse of one of them, around a single fighter plane hidden in a barn. The plane is discovered and communist militia forces are sent to take it. In the ensuing battle some of them are killed. The pilots are arrested and on trial. Squadron Commander Frank tells the judge, in a central scene: ''I'm not interested in this country, because I hate democracy like a plague. Whatever you want to do I will avoid, as much as I could. We must establish Germany on its feet, a Germany that will meet the demands of the combatant soldiers."
In the last part of the film, Frank escapes from prison through his friends and escapes abroad. He returns after the Nazis come to power, meets on the harbor wharf his old friends, who have already received senior military ranks. At he end, he is welcomed with royal honor, in front of an endless line of fighter planes. In fact the scene recreates the return of Hermann Goering to Germany, having fled from it to Sweden following the failed putsch in the beer cellar. The scene is combined with a 1935 documentary-like segment: Nazi flags are hoisted in the streets, and the crowd hears over the loudspeaker the re-armament speech of Germany. Later, the crowd gathers in the square at the foot of the monument in memory of the soldiers who fell in the war. The picture is replaced by a dramatic announcement by a veteran pilot, standing on the wing of a plane at an airfield, about the re-establishment of the Luftwaffe.
This last scene in the film is the most cinematically impressive. The scene is initially constructed from a preliminary abstract avant-garde, in which the protagonist is seen up close against the backdrop of the body of the ship that unloads him in port. There he is received by his only friends, who take him to the squadron, over which he receives re-command. In the process, the cinematic image develops and becomes broad, rich in details, realistic and even symbolic. At its peak there is a display of dozens of fighter planes in a straight line to the horizon. At the same time, this lengthy scene incorporates footage of the enthusiastic crowd in the streets.
Ernest Udet, whose public status was far more prominent than that of Herman Goering during the Weimar Republic, appears in an important supporting role. His name in the film is Fabian, and comedic romantic scenes starring him make up the first quarter of the film. In other sections, in the middle of the film, he represents the one who managed to get by in spite of everything, and sets up a small aircraft factory. At the end of the film he happily integrates into the new regime. All excerpts are based on details from his familiar biography, thus further establishing the film's authentic value.
"Pour Le Merite" presents the Luftwaffe as the legitimate successor of the Imperial Air Force, leaning on the heroic status of the air heroes of the First World War, They are founders of the new and powerful Air Force, which was established despite the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles. The gneral symbolic value of the airplane and the pilot is demonstrated from the opening exposition scene to the very last moment.
The film attacks the Jews, but does so in a moderate way, in a short segment that shows Frank's failure in business. The Communists are greater enemies, and a considerable part is of confrontations with them. The greatest enemy is the new German democracy, which has ignored the needs of war veterans. The film highlights the warrior hero, not as a mythical archetype but as a modern flesh-and-blood folk character, whose embodiment as a superhero involves the achievements of the entire nation.
