The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Somebody Really Ought to Make a ‘Downfall’ Parody Video About This

Posted on | April 20, 2010 | 32 Comments

Except of course, you can’t do that anymore:

‘Hitler Reacts to…’ — that patron saint of YouTube memes — seems to be on its way out. The clips, which dub a scene from the 2004 German-language film ‘Downfall,’ are being rapidly pulled by Constantin Films, which is claiming copyright infringement.
The film features Hitler (portrayed by Bruno Ganz), ensconced in his bunker, learning he cannot win the war. The viral video versions tweak the subtitles to have Hitler reacting explosively to current events . . .
“Earlier today, someone attempted to upload a new version surrounding the massive iPhone 4G news. Unfortunately, as you can see on YouTube, that video has already been removed,” TechCrunch reported yesterday. The New York Times covered the phenomenon in 2008, estimating more than 100 instances of the Hitler meme.
“We as a corporation have a bit of an ambivalent view of it,” Martin Moszkowicz, an executive at Constantin Film, told the BBC. “On the one hand, we are proud the picture has such a huge fan base and that people are using it for parody. On the other hand, we are trying to protect the artists.”

No more “Downfall” parodies? The Blogosphere, 2001-2010, R.I.P.

Category: Blogging, humor

Comments

32 Responses to “Somebody Really Ought to Make a ‘Downfall’ Parody Video About This”

  1. Bob Belvedere
    April 20th, 2010 @ 8:26 pm

    I believe, if my understanding of the law in the US is correct, that You Tube is under no legal obligation to pull the parodies down.

    Are you out there Roxeanne?

  2. Bob Belvedere
    April 20th, 2010 @ 3:26 pm

    I believe, if my understanding of the law in the US is correct, that You Tube is under no legal obligation to pull the parodies down.

    Are you out there Roxeanne?

  3. William
    April 20th, 2010 @ 8:40 pm

    Whelp, so long, the internet! Back to being misinformed by the NYT for me!

  4. William
    April 20th, 2010 @ 3:40 pm

    Whelp, so long, the internet! Back to being misinformed by the NYT for me!

  5. Nice Deb
    April 20th, 2010 @ 8:58 pm

    No more Downfall videos???? Damn Nazis!

  6. Nice Deb
    April 20th, 2010 @ 3:58 pm

    No more Downfall videos???? Damn Nazis!

  7. Charles Johnson
    April 20th, 2010 @ 11:41 pm

    I am like a dog offered bacon when anyone mentions Nazis!

  8. Charles Johnson
    April 20th, 2010 @ 6:41 pm

    I am like a dog offered bacon when anyone mentions Nazis!

  9. newrouter
    April 21st, 2010 @ 12:35 am

    dude they should be making money with this clip.

  10. newrouter
    April 20th, 2010 @ 7:35 pm

    dude they should be making money with this clip.

  11. Thomas L. Knapp
    April 21st, 2010 @ 12:52 am

    The only thing Constantin Film is “protecting the artists” from is any royalties they get from the film being purchased, rented, etc. because someone saw a parody and decided to check out the movie.

  12. Thomas L. Knapp
    April 20th, 2010 @ 7:52 pm

    The only thing Constantin Film is “protecting the artists” from is any royalties they get from the film being purchased, rented, etc. because someone saw a parody and decided to check out the movie.

  13. DavidD
    April 21st, 2010 @ 1:21 am

    Re: Thomas’s comment…

    EXACTLY. I only decided to see the movie after first one of the bunker-scene parodies.

  14. DavidD
    April 20th, 2010 @ 8:21 pm

    Re: Thomas’s comment…

    EXACTLY. I only decided to see the movie after first one of the bunker-scene parodies.

  15. Joe
    April 21st, 2010 @ 3:03 am

    The Tony Romo/Dallas Downfall parody should be preserved in the National Archives.

  16. Joe
    April 20th, 2010 @ 10:03 pm

    The Tony Romo/Dallas Downfall parody should be preserved in the National Archives.

  17. Luke
    April 21st, 2010 @ 3:40 am

    I’m pretty darn sure that parodies are explicitly protected from claims of copyright infringement in the USA, however much the MPAA and RIAA wish it were otherwise.

  18. Luke
    April 20th, 2010 @ 10:40 pm

    I’m pretty darn sure that parodies are explicitly protected from claims of copyright infringement in the USA, however much the MPAA and RIAA wish it were otherwise.

  19. Rich Fader
    April 21st, 2010 @ 3:49 am

    The Knappster is exactly right. I guarantee you more people know about that flick because of the parodies than ever did because of the official trailers.

  20. Rich Fader
    April 20th, 2010 @ 10:49 pm

    The Knappster is exactly right. I guarantee you more people know about that flick because of the parodies than ever did because of the official trailers.

  21. meep
    April 21st, 2010 @ 3:52 am

    The funny thing is, the director of the movie thought the parodies were hilarious:

    http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2010/01/the_director_of_downfall_on_al.html

    Seriously, these people can’t understand that they’re getting free publicity. Things like this actually make people WANT to see the movie because through the parody they are being exposed to something they might not otherwise see.

    For more examples of media’s stupid critical mass:

    http://www.boingboing.net/2010/03/18/youtube-viacom-secre.html

    Yep, that’s right. Viacom sued YouTube for videos that VIACOM uploaded to YouTube. Uh huh. Jerks.

  22. meep
    April 20th, 2010 @ 10:52 pm

    The funny thing is, the director of the movie thought the parodies were hilarious:

    http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2010/01/the_director_of_downfall_on_al.html

    Seriously, these people can’t understand that they’re getting free publicity. Things like this actually make people WANT to see the movie because through the parody they are being exposed to something they might not otherwise see.

    For more examples of media’s stupid critical mass:

    http://www.boingboing.net/2010/03/18/youtube-viacom-secre.html

    Yep, that’s right. Viacom sued YouTube for videos that VIACOM uploaded to YouTube. Uh huh. Jerks.

  23. Crabtree
    April 21st, 2010 @ 5:31 am

    Oh come on! Fair use parody!

  24. Crabtree
    April 21st, 2010 @ 12:31 am

    Oh come on! Fair use parody!

  25. Cynthia Yockey, A Conservative
    April 21st, 2010 @ 2:09 pm

    I seem to be the only blogger who noticed they did this ON HITLER’S BIRTHDAY!!!

  26. Cynthia Yockey, A Conservative Lesbian
    April 21st, 2010 @ 9:09 am

    I seem to be the only blogger who noticed they did this ON HITLER’S BIRTHDAY!!!

  27. Cynthia Yockey, A Conservative Lesbian
    April 21st, 2010 @ 9:10 am

    Constantin Films celebrates Hitler’s birthday by forcing YouTube to remove Hitler ‘Downfall’ parodies over copyright claim…

    Share Personally, I don’t think I would have chosen April 20, the 121st anniversary of Hitler’s birthday, as the day I forced YouTube to take down the parody videos made using the bunker scene from the Academy Award-nominated 2004 German fi…

  28. Ira
    April 21st, 2010 @ 8:42 pm

    gee whiz, I downloaded the whole movie from YouTube. The Romanian born actress who plays Hitler’s secretary is a doll.

  29. Ira
    April 21st, 2010 @ 3:42 pm

    gee whiz, I downloaded the whole movie from YouTube. The Romanian born actress who plays Hitler’s secretary is a doll.

  30. Dave C
    April 22nd, 2010 @ 4:30 am

    Somebody Really Ought to Make a ‘Downfall’ Parody Video About This

    That was fast.

    http://pointofagun.blogspot.com/2010/04/dont-worry-hell-realize-irony-soon.html

  31. Dave C
    April 21st, 2010 @ 11:30 pm

    Somebody Really Ought to Make a ‘Downfall’ Parody Video About This

    That was fast.

    http://pointofagun.blogspot.com/2010/04/dont-worry-hell-realize-irony-soon.html

  32. What Kind of Totalitarian A–hole Would Object to ‘Downfall’ YouTube Parodies? : The Other McCain
    April 22nd, 2010 @ 12:28 pm

    […] the future.YouTube: Obeying Der Fuhrer Since 2010(Hat-tips: Instapundit and Memeorandum.)PREVIOUSLY:Somebody Really Ought to Make a ‘Downfall’ Parody About This var addthis_pub='smitty1e';var addthis_language='en';var addthis_options='twitter, digg, email, […]