Total state: Riefenstahl’s Triumph of the Will

The opening images of Triumph of the Will (Triumph des Willens, 1935) are all of flight. We see first, lifted by Herbert Windt’s soaring score, the iron eagle of the Reich, wings spread wide. Successive titles tell us of Germany’s Christlike suffering (Leiden) and its majestic rebirth (Wiedergeburt). The final title card begins with the word “flew” ( flog):

flog Adolf Hitler wiederum nach Nürnberg um heerschau abzuhalten über seine Getreuen.