Did you ever expect to hear John Cusack utter the line, "C'mon Hitler, I'll buy you a lemonade?" Certainly, I have not. But it perfectly sums up the feel of Menno Meyjes' "Max," a Canadian/German/Hungarian/English production written and directed by Meyjes and co-produced by Cusack.
The American star plays post-World War I German art dealer Max Rothman, who during the war lost his arm in a battle in which he fought alongside a young corporal Adolph Hitler, although they didn't know each other then.
Soon after the war, Hitler appears at Rothman's gallery with his portfolio. The two are intrigued by one another and their differences. Hitler is a budding anti-semite trying to figure out which path to pursue: politics or art. He returned from the war uninjured (physically) but had no family, no home, no money. Rothman came back without his right arm and now without his old life as a painter. But he had money and the warm bosom of a family.
When Rothman tells Hitler that he needs to dig deeper within himself to mine inspiration, the future fuhrer is furious. And Hitler's anti-semitism seems to rise to the surface each time he is enraged. These are the little moments when we wonder most what, exactly, Meyjes is trying to say.
Of course, the entire film is a sort of "what if" scenario and there are lots of moments when we're clearly supposed to think that if only Hitler were a little more comfortable with the ladies or if he were a more inspired painter -- or if that darn Rothman would have given him a show at the gallery -- the world would be a much different place. It's fun (or is it?) -- if tragically pointless -- to consider.
There are some witty moments, such as the one when Rothman offers the tea-totaling, anti-smoking Hitler a soft drink at a local pub. There's irony, like when Hitler is angered by the inhumanity of keeping small birds in cages. In his modest studio, we see a portrait of an Irish Setter; people, after all, like to point out that Hitler loved dogs. But the film seems to be trying too hard.
That's not to say there are not some interesting moments and certainly Cusack does a good job as the playboy bourgeois art dealer living a mildly raucous life in an attempt to put the war and his injury out of mind.
Noah Taylor is astonishing as the young Hitler. He looks fit to burst when orating, as if the pent up rage and anger inside will sear a whole through his chest. He also manages to convince us that, believe it or not, Hitler was a human being that felt happiness, anger, vanity, insecurity and satisfaction. That can't be an easy feat.
"Max" is available on DVD.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
