Outstanding documentary on the theft and destruction of European masterpieces up to and during WWII.
Comment
10/16/08
The Rape Of Europa (2007)
79 %
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted: 39
Fresh: 31
Rotten:8
Average Rating: 7.2/10
Runtime: 1 hr 57 mins
Genre: Musical & Performing Arts
Synopsis: Joan Allen narrates this documentary that chronicles the plight of Europe's greatest artistic treasures during the Nazi reign. As the Third Reich attempted to destroy the continent's culture, art... [More]
Director: Bonni Cohen, Richard Berge, Nicole Newnham
Get This Movie
Rent DVD
Click on the "ADD" button to put this movie into your Netflix queue.
Buy DVD
Reviews for The Rape Of Europa
A fascinating history lesson about a generally-overshadowed aspect of the Second World War.
09/22/08
That Hitler was mad is well known. That he was mad about art, not so well.
08/15/08
Top CriticThe Rape of Europa boasts a strong narration by Joan Allen as it explores a less familiar aspect of World War II and the legacy left by the Nazis.
06/20/08
The Rape of Europa is conventionally made, but it doesn't need cinematic sizzle because it's packed with so many fascinating factoids.
05/30/08
The Rape of Europa, an engrossing film based on Lynn Nicholas' 1995 book of the same name, offers a fascinating new perspective on an era that sometimes seems as if it has no more secrets.
05/29/08
Top CriticThe directors might have benefited by going smaller %u2014 for instance, focusing on two or three pieces of lost artwork and tracing their history. This art documentary simply isn't artful enough.
05/29/08
It's a compelling journey into a soul-chilling past that might not be fully sorted out for generations to come.
05/02/08
Its lack of both style and focus keeps it from being a success as a feature film.
04/24/08
The Rape of Europa presents iconic images that viewers who aren't schooled in European art will recognize. That's a good way to connect with the film and understand the enormity of the pillage by Hitler and his cronies.
04/11/08
The movie's three directors sap the drama out of the story with slow pacing, a dispassionate accumulation of facts and a too-dry narration by Joan Allen.
04/04/08
Narrated by Joan Allen, the film is a remarkably comprehensive look at the cultural destruction that accompanied the slaughter.
03/28/08
It's long for a documentary, almost two hours, but it has a big story to tell.
03/06/08
Top CriticThis is a vast subject, ideally suited to a series of films. It's at its most moving when focusing on the small stories of individual artworks taken from their owners and restored to the families decades later.
02/08/08
(T)his dense, dynamic documentary... takes on the high drama and difficult moral quandaries of Adolf Hitler's campaign to plunder the great artworks of Europe...
02/08/08
As thorough as the movie is, it could easily devote another hour to cases like this.
02/01/08
Top CriticThere is a heart-rending feeling to this documentary, in part due to its sense of irretrievable loss.
01/25/08
Top CriticFilmmakers Richard Berge, Bonni Cohen, and Nicole Newnham do a superb job of telling this neglected story in vivid detail.
01/11/08
Top CriticRenders one of the most arresting untold stories of World War II into something quite unaccountably boring.
01/07/08
A startling documentary.
01/04/08
Top CriticLatest News for The Rape Of Europa
January 11, 2008:
Juno, No Country for Old Men Among Writers Guild Award Nominees
If there's one Hollywood awards ceremony that you'd think would be able to go off without a hitch this year, it'd be the Writers Guild Awards -- but you'd be wrong. More...
November 20, 2007:
Fifteen Documentaries Vie for Oscar Consideration
A little over a week after reporting the names of the dozen films being submitted for Oscar consideration in the animated feature film category, Variety has given readers the... More...
Related Forums for The Rape Of Europa
RT On Current TV
What’s Hot On RT
Fresh Links
Featured
Point-Counterpoint: Bruno 
MSN's David Fear and Frank Paiva go head to head discussing the pros and cons of Bruno star Sacha Baron Cohen.
The New Cult Canon
The AV Club's Scott Tobias takes a second look at David Lynch's cult classic, Lost Highway.
Tom Cruise's 10 Best Roles
TIME takes us on a 25-year long journey into the superstar's career, giving us a look at his 10 best roles.
A Baywatch Comedy?
BuzzSugar reports on Paramount's plans to rebirth the iconic TV show as a comedy film.
IGN RSS Feeds