Focusing on the anti-War resistance of the White Rose movement in 1940s Germany, Marc Rothemund’s compelling chronicle of courage is based on Sophie Scholl’s interrogation and trial records, and so shares some of the authenticity and intensity of silent masterpiece The Passion Of Joan Of Arc. Certainly, Julia Jentsch’s display of quiet stoicism as Scholl, the student who was guillotined for distributing propaganda leaflets, can be compared to that of Arc’s Falconetti as she combines political conviction with a burgeoning spiritual surety of the righteousness of her cause.
Gerald Alexander Held also impresses as the punctilious criminologist whose respect for Scholl grows during his claustrophobic inquisition. The only flaw is that André Hennicke was allowed to portray the presiding magistrate as a stereotypical ranting fanatic.