I’m watching Verhoeven’s Weisse Rose again. I’m impressed with it every time I see it. Finally got to Forchtenberg a couple weeks ago, which adds a certain resonance.
It’s funny how we see the same film differently re-watching over time. I know many viewers relate to Sophie Scholl, but never having been a college-age woman I was never particularly drawn to her, interested much more in Hans Scholl, especially his written reflections on both morals and ethics, including the Catholic inspiration. In this film I find his initial monologue to Sophie explaining his actions moving each time I hear it.
Today I find myself focusing on Martin Benrath’s Kurt Huber. It was actually Huber’s leaflet Hans and Sophie were handing out when they were arrested. Perhaps it’s his age and balding pate which drew me this year, but in his heated exchange with his wife explaining the need for resistance to the state, Verhoeven’s Huber mentions teaching Erkenntnistheorie. I stopped the film, opened Wikipedia, and there it was: Joseph Geysers Stellung in Logik und Erkenntnistheorie. There are so often worlds within worlds.
