Mother Night (1996)

New Line Cinema's 'Mother Night' movie poster
New Line Cinema
director:
details
Studio: Fine Line Features
Rating: R
Release Date: Nov 1, 1996
Running Time: 113 mins.
Country Of Origin: United States
synopsis
Howard W. Campbell Jr., an American writer living in pre-World War II Germany, is pressed into service by the U.S. government on a top secret assignment. His mission: to assume the role of a Nazi sympathizer. With his true purpose known by only a few, Campbell becomes a prominent spokesman for the Nazis' anti-American and anti-semitic agenda, gaining celebrity in Germany and infamy in the States. Campbell's nightmarish misadventures continue when, years after the war, he is suddenly recognized as the infamous Howard W. Campbell. All at once, he is persecuted by outraged Holocaust survivors, pursued by the U.S. authorities as a traitor, and embraced by neo-Nazis and white supremacists who feel nostalgia for the "good old days." Ultimately, Campbell is imprisoned in Israel and ordered to stand trial as a Nazi war criminal. During his incarceration, he struggles with own uncertainty as to whether he actually a hero, a villain, or both.
cast + crew
Director
Howard Campbell
Resi Noth
George Kraft
(uncredited) Frank Wirtanen
Resi Noth -- Age 13
Abraham Epstein
Black Fuhrer of Harlem
Bernard B O'Hare
Dr Lionel Jones
Werner Noth
screenplay
Novel as Source Material
Producer
Producer
Executive Producer
Executive Producer
Executive Producer
reviews
Source
December 8, 2000
Nick Nolte does his best acting in years as Howard Campbell, an American writer living in Germany during World War II who spies on the Nazis by pretending to be one and ends up confused about good and evil. After all, his sexy German wife, Helga (Sheryl Lee), and her cute sister, Resi (Kirsten Dunst), think his genocidal rap is just dandy.


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