Nazis as Movie Villains: The Evolution of a Cliche
Not all cinematic Hitler fans have been unambiguously depraved, but these ones were
Films use Nazis as bad guys for good reason: They were bad guys. But all too often, genocidal Germans act as cartoon crutches for storytellers looking to pit good against incontrovertible evil.
In films like the just-released Captain America, the outcome is blandness. In other cases, the presence of Nazis provides cover for gratuitous violence, or as shortcuts to creating a sense of persecution among the movie's protagonists.
Not all cinematic Hitler fans have been unambiguously depraved, but these ones were:
