Russell Crowe (Jor-El), Michael Shannon (General Zod), and Rami Malek (Freddie Mercury) are set to get Nazi-tastic and star in a new movie about Nuremberg.
The historical drama is based on Jack El Hai’s book The Nazi and the Psychiatrist and is set in post-war Germany. It tells the story of American psychiatrist Douglas Kelley (Malek), who is tasked with determining whether Nazi prisoners are fit to stand trial for war crimes. Kelley finds himself in a battle of wits with Hitler’s right-hand man, Hermann Göring (Crowe). Shannon will play Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson, the chief prosecutor of the Nuremberg trials.
Nuremberg is the latest directorial outing for writer-producer James Vanderbilt (Zodiac), who is writing the script based on the book. Walden Media, Bluestone Entertainment, and Széchenyi Funds acquired the rights to El-Hai’s book and are financing the film. Vanderbilt said in a statement:
“What an absolute honor it is to be working with such a tremendously talented group of actors. Our partners at Bluestone and Walden have been incredibly supportive, and I cannot wait to bring this amazing true story to the screen.”
Walden’s President of Production, Ben Tappan said:
“Walden is thrilled to help bring James Vanderbilt‘s vision to the screen in the courageous effort to pursue justice in the aftermath of World War II. This astounding moment in history, as brought to life with our extraordinary cast, is a riveting story that is sure to intrigue and resonate with audiences today.”
The Nuremberg Trials
For those who don’t know, the purpose of the Nuremberg trials was to bring Nazi war criminals to justice. They were a series of 13 trials carried out in Nuremberg, Germany, between 1945 and 1949. The defendants included Nazi Party officials and high-ranking military officers along with German industrialists, lawyers, and doctors. They were indicted on charges of crimes against peace and crimes against humanity, including conducting medical experiments on prisoners of war.
The thought of doctors and medical staff carrying out medical experiments on people alarmed the governments so much that in the trial of USA v. Brandt, which became known as the “Doctors’ Trial”, German physicians responsible for conducting unethical medical procedures on humans during the war were tried.
On 20 August 1947, the judges delivered their verdict against Karl Brandt and 22 others. As a result, a memorandum to the United States Counsel for War Crimes outlining 10 points for legitimate medical research was drawn up. The ten points became known as the Code, which includes such principles as informed consent and absence of coercion, properly formulated scientific experimentation, and beneficence towards experiment participants.
I couldn’t even begin to imagine a world where people were coerced into taking part in a medical experiment…
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