Conspiracy (2001)
Conspiracy is a 2001 co-production between the BBC and HBO, that dramatises the events of the Wannsee Conference of 1942. Based upon secret minutes of the meeting, the drama explores the businesslike manner in which the German State decided and implemented the "Final Solution of the Jewish Question" during World War II. Set in a confiscated lakeside villa in the Berlin borough of Wannsee, the plot unfolds around a conference table. The screenplay by Loring Mandel is free from theatrics and hyperbole. Instead it focuses upon a chilling meeting in which genocide is calmly debated in the same way as armament quotas or economic growth. Frank Pierson’s direction is straightforward and uncomplicated allowing the viewer to dwell on the manner and tone of the proceedings. Conspiracy features an ensemble cast, including Kenneth Branagh as Reinhard Heydrich, Stanley Tucci as Adolf Eichmann, Colin Firth as Dr Wilhelm Stuckart and an early appearance by Tom Hiddleston.
Conspiracy achieves much, considering the scope and implications of the subject matter. It manages to juggle a dozen characters, all of whom are from distinct and diverse backgrounds with clear agendas of their own. Soldiers, government officials and civil servants all seem to view the “final solution” as an administrative, logistical and legal problem. Dr Rudolph Lange (Barnaby Kay) states how execution by shooting is bad for troops' morale. It is an incongruous comment that focuses on psychological welfare of those conducting mass murder. Yet the screenplay successfully provides insight into this broad group’s motivations. Heydrich is shown to be a consummate manipulator as he cajoles and coerces all present into towing the official party line. It soon becomes clear that the decision to commit genocide had already been taken and that this meeting was not designed to agree it but to officially implement it and bind all present to the undertaking by collective involvement.
Conspiracy is a difficult film to watch, in that the magnitude of what is being discussed verges upon the incomprehensible. Performances are universally strong and compelling. There are several key incidents that occur that indicate the inevitability of the proposed “final solution”. Those looking to legitimise the proceedings legally are forced to abandon such a position. One bureaucrat even considers the implementation of this policy as being beneficial to his career. But perhaps the most chilling of all of these is the way in which Heydrich makes all present complicit with the decision, binding them by guilt. And then once the task is complete, all attendees calmly depart back to their regular jobs and posts. Heydrich comments about moving into the villa in which the conference has been held, once the war is over. Conspiracy ends with a summary of what happened to those attending the Wannsee Conference. Many were acquitted by Allied military tribunals after the war and lived the remainder of their lives in West Germany.
