"Stella: The Woman Who Sold Her Jewish Compatriots to Hitler", The Legend of Blonde Poison [Enokido Ichiro's Film Akasatana Vol. 71]

At the beginning, there is a disclaimer that the film is a "fictional story based on facts." This drama is based on the book " Stella: The Woman Who Sold Her Jewish Country to Hitler " (Peter Weiden, Hara Shobo). There was a woman named Stella Goldschlag who was Jewish herself, but worked for the Gestapo (secret police), sending many of her fellow Jews to extermination camps and concentration camps. She was blonde and beautiful, so she was nicknamed "Blonde Poison." The author, Peter Weiden, describes the process by which Stella became a Nazi collaborator, along with the social background. Rather than accusing and condemning wrongdoing, I think it was a non-fiction work that placed emphasis on the idea that "anyone can be Stella = fear can change people."

The film is a joint production between Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the UK, so of course European audiences (especially in Germany) know about Stella Goldschlag. Only a few people from the wartime generation know the details, but they know that there was a Nazi collaborator named Stella Goldschlag. Her book " Stella the Informer " was also a hot topic, and more importantly, she lived until 1994. We see what's happening to the legendary "Blonde Poison" on the news and so on.

I thought the movie "Stella" (23) was a pretty good adaptation. The movie starts with "Stella, who dreams of going to America and becoming a jazz singer." She starts singing right away. It's a glamorous scene. Of course, the introductory sequence is used to introduce the characters, so what the audience remembers is "the free-spirited Stella enjoying American music culture." Well, many Jewish musicians fled to America and became the backbone of American show business after the war, so I guess that's the image that Stella and her friends have.

So, my first impression was, "Oh, this is a movie about a free-spirited woman who is dominated by the terror of the Nazis and falls into darkness." Roughly speaking, it's a "sad woman" movie. In "sad woman" movies, the man is the bad guy. The man is bad, and society is bad. In fact, in the movie "Stella: The Woman Who Sold Her Jews to Hitler," the man she dates is the key to the story's development. Her first lover, Freid (a serious-looking guy), is kidnapped on the day of the roundup and sent to a concentration camp. And that's where she meets the ladies' man, Rolf. Rolf is a bad guy with connections in the underworld. He makes a killing selling fake IDs to Jewish people who are trying to escape the persecution of the Nazis.

"Stella: The Woman Who Sold Her Jewish Country to Hitler" ©2023 LETTERBOX FILMPRODUKTION / SevenPictures Film / Real Film Berlin / Amalia Film / DOR FILM / Lago Film / Gretchenfilm / DCM / Contrast Film / blue Entertainment

My favorite scene in this movie is when Stella meets Rolf. He hits on her on a street corner in Berlin, and for a moment her eyes sparkle. That's what I like about it. Immediately after, the scene changes to a love scene, but the moment Stella's eyes sparkle as she is hit on by a man is sexier and more appealing than the love scene. The moment Stella makes up her mind. The moment she steps into a new world. Stella is played by a German actress called Paula Beer, who has a light and wonderful way with her movements. She always gives off an impression of being "nimble." Stella turns her body lightly and throws herself into the world of Rolf (Berlin under the Nazi regime, surviving with wit and bluffing).

So, I thought about it, and the reason why I like this moment when her eyes shine is because I felt Stella's will. She's not a "sad woman" who is deceived by a bad man and falls into darkness. Okay, I'll do it. That's the kind of "Hirari" she is.

Both Stella and Rolf end up being caught by the Gestapo, threatened, and manipulated, but even after becoming a "blonde poison" who sells out her fellow countrymen, Stella is still cool. The scene where she spots a Jew among the people relaxing at a cafe on the main street and tries to catch him, calling herself "Gestapo!" She flashes her coat and briefly shouts "Gestapo!" Of course, the person who is told this is terrified to the point of freezing blood. Her true identity has been discovered. Well, if you think about it carefully, Stella is the one who should have been afraid of the Gestapo (=Jewish), but as she is used, she becomes the Gestapo itself and even enjoys inflicting fear. That's how cool she is. Please pay attention to the scene where she briefly shouts "Gestapo!" and her coat "flashes."

Is "Blonde Poison" a victim of men and society? Or is she an assailant who drove her compatriots to their deaths? I hear that the real Stella Goldschlag was proud of her appearance as a pure Aryan woman, as glorified by the Nazis. Her blonde hair and beauty were just a cover, but at some point she was unable to take off the mask of "pretending to be a pure Aryan." But the direction of this film doesn't particularly depict the anguish of identity.

Text: Ichiro Enoki

Born in 1959. Born in Akita Prefecture. Debuted in a commercial magazine with ``Takarajima'' in 1980 while studying at Chuo University. Since then, he has serialized columns and essays in various magazines, and continues to this day. Also active on radio and television. Twitter @ichiroenokido

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"Stella: The Woman Who Sold Her Jewish Country to Hitler"

Released nationwide from Friday, February 7th at Shinjuku Musashinokan and other locations

Distribution: Clockworks

©2023 LETTERBOX FILMPRODUKTION / SevenPictures Film / Real Film Berlin / Amalia Film / DOR FILM / Lago Film / Gretchenfilm / DCM / Contrast Film / blue Entertainment