Winter Film Festival - Nuremberg

“Nuremberg” had its world premiere in the Gale Presentation section of the Toronto International Film Festival on September 7, 2025 and is based on the 2013 book “The Nazi and the Psychiatrist” by Jack El-Hai.

As the Nuremberg trials are set to begin, a US Army psychiatrist gets locked in a dramatic psychological showdown with accused Nazi war criminal Hermann Goring.

If there are any history buffs out there planning on going to the Dietrich Theater Winter Film Festival, then I highly suggest you check out the film “Nuremberg.” This film festival selection is a powerful and superbly acted historical drama that meticulously covers the post-WWII legal proceedings. The film also delivers a riveting and historically accurate portrayal of the trial, offering a detailed look at the accountability of Nazi officials.

“Nuremberg” also does an astounding job turning a historical courtroom drama into a very gripping thriller. One of the strongest elements that makes this film quite riveting are the really strong performances from the entire cast, especially from Russell Crowe, who actually gives one of the best performances in years in this film.

Crowe’s portrayal of war criminal Hermann Goring is easily one of the highlights of this film and is definitely worthy of award recognition. And, with the award season over in a few weeks, I’m actually surprised that either his performance or the film in general received any award recognition.

His performance as Goring brings a commanding presence that can also be a little ominous at times. His scenes with Rami Malek (Dr. Kelley), who also did an amazing job, during their intense, psychological battles are definitely some of the best moments in the film. Crowe’s performance is quite cunning especially when Goring is trying to reframe himself from a Nazi monster to a rational, misunderstood leader, using his intellect to manipulate the narrative of his crimes.

While pretty much all of the scenes featuring Dr. Kelley and Goring really stand out (especially during their psychological battles), the entire courtroom sequences are easily some of the best moments, especially when the British prosecutor David Maxwell-

Fyfe (Richard E. Grant) begins to take Goring down.

The most compelling and emotional moment occurs during the trial where we see actual footage of the Nazi death camps. Those chilling moments can easily deeply affect a viewer. While the imagery can be quite graphic, it remained a crucial moment of its actual trial and the film and probably wouldn’t have the same emotional effect for the film if it was a recreation of the footage itself.

“Nuremberg” is a gripping, solid historical drama that explores the psychological and legal complexities of the 1945-1946 trials. This is a strong, engaging film that is an absolute must-see during the film festival.

Cast: Rami Malek (Douglas Kelley); Russell Crowe (Hermann Goring); Michael Shannon (Justice Robert H. Jackson); Leo Woodall (Sgt. Howie Triest); John Slattery (Col. Burton Andrus); Richard E. Grant (Sir David Maxwell-Fyfe); Mark O’Brien (Col. John Amen); Colin Hanks (Dr. Gustave Gilbert); Wrenn Schmidt (Elsie Douglas)

Writer/director: James Vanderbilt (Apple’s Fountain of Youth; Netflix’s Murder Mystery 2; Scream; Scream VI)

Trivia: Robert Jackson’s opening statement at the beginning of the trial scene is an exact, although shortened, recitation of the actual opening statement given on November 21, 1945, the second day of the military tribunal. To this day, legal experts consider it one of the most influential speeches in the canon of international law and criminal jurisprudence.

MPA: Rated PG-13 for violent content involving the Holocaust, strong disturbing images, suicide, some language, smoking and brief drug content   (runtime 148 minutes)

The remaining show dates and times for “Nuremberg” during the Winter Film Festival are as follows: Thursday March 5 - noon; Sunday March 8 - 5 pm; Thursday March 12 - 12 pm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvAy9C-bipY

• Michael Shannon's opening statement at the beginning of the trial scene is an exact, although shortened, recitation of the actual opening statement given by Justice Robert Jackson on November 21, 1945, the second day of the military tribunal. To this day, legal experts consider it one of the most influential speeches in the canon of international law and criminal jurisprudence.

• Much of Robert Jackson's cross-examination of Hermann Goring is presented verbatim from the actual record of the trial.

• The Nuremberg trials marked the first time that film and photographs of the inner workings of the Nazi concentration camps were publicly shown. Accounts from those present at the trial reported that the evidence shown was so shocking that several witnesses fainted and others broke down in tears.

• Michael Shannon, Russell Crowe, and Richard E. Grant delivered their courtroom scenes in complete takes lasting as long as 25 minutes. The background extras, many played by Hungarians with family history in the war, would burst into applause at the end of each take.

• Although Hermann Göring was in real-life fluent in English, and would converse in English with his jailers, he chose to deliver his court testimony in German. He and Robert Jackson engaged in cross-examination through interpreter translation transmitted through headphones.

• As depicted in the film, Hermann Göring was among 12 members of the Nazi high command sentenced to death by hanging, but took his own life by ingesting a cyanide capsule shortly before his scheduled execution. The film never explains how he gets the cyanide into his cell, but in 2005, a confession by a former guard stationed at the prison Göring was held offered one plausible answer. The guard said that a German girl he'd met, named "Mona", fooled him into passing Göring the poison in a small glass vial she claimed was medicine. Göring himself, however, left a note for the prison commander saying that none of the guards were responsible, and in fact he had smuggled the cyanide into his cell in a jar of hair cream. Göring also claimed he would've allowed the Allies to execute him, with the exception it be by firing squad, which he called "a soldierly death", refusing to accept the "humiliation" of being hanged.