Romanze in Moll and the Turn of the War

When analyzing the appendix in Rentschler’s book, I found it interesting that Romance in a Minor Key was produced in 1943, the year in which the tide of the war began to turn in favor of the Allies. As the appendix mentions, there was the surrender of German forces in Stalingrad in the beginning of the year, forcing Goebbels to make his “total war” speech that encouraged a complete dedication and sacrifice on behalf of the German population for the war effort. The film Romance in a Minor Key is clearly marked by ambiguous claims, and is difficult to interpret as a purely propaganda-inspired piece of art. The Ministry of Propaganda must have noticed this as well, considering the film was banned before it went on to win numerous awards. The film seems to blatantly reject basic Nazi principles through techniques such as the presentation of the husband as a dupe despite his presentation as a stereotypical “Nazi” figure. On the contrast, Michael is also not a Nazi hero: the film presents no strong images of a patriotic and ideal Nazi hero. Generally speaking, the film in no way exalts Nazi values at a time in which the party really needed the support and morale of the people. However, despite the film’s apparent lack of Nazi glorification, the film obviously resonated with the populace, perhaps proving the growing disenchantment with National Socialism that began to emerge around 1943.