Operation Valkyrie: The Stauffenberg Plot to Kill Hitler

Released to tie-in with the feature film Valkyrie (featuring Tom Cruise as heroic German officer Claus von Stauffenberg), this documentary revisits the failed July 20, 1944 plot to kill Hitler, putting the story of the aristocratic Stauffenberg's actions into proper historical perspective. Combining rare archival color footage, interviews with historians, and re-enactments, filmmaker Jean-Pierre Isbouts' Operation Valkyrie is a fine documentary about a bizarre footnote in World War II history, exploring the reasons behind a high-ranking officer's decision to risk everything to murder the Nazi leader, as well as what went wrong in the seemingly foolproof assassination plan that employed conveniently placed bombs. The DVD features two hours' worth of impressive extras, including a look at other failed assassination attempts on Hitler, a tour of the German Resistance Memorial Center in Berlin, newly remastered color home movie footage shot by Hitler's mistress Eva Braun, and an interview with Philipp Baron von Boeselager, the last surviving member of the Stauffenberg plan. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)