A Kitten For Hitler (Ken Russell, 2007) (Patreon)

A brief note about A Kitten For Hitler, which I watched out of perverse curiosity. Word is that Melvyn Bragg, producer of The South Bank Show, challenged Ken Russell to make a film that he himself would want to be censored. Of course, given Russell's penchant for pushing boundaries, this was quite the obstruction, and the result was this eight-minute comedy short which, to my contemporary eyes, looks a lot like a failed attempt to make a Guy Maddin film. The premise is absurd: in a Brooklyn movie house during the war, a young Jewish boy named Lenny (Rusty Goffe) feels bad for Hitler, because everyone is booing him. He decides that all "Uncle Adolf" needs is for someone to show him a little kindness.

Almost works too. Hitler is moved to tears by the gift, but when he sees Lenny's Star of David necklace, he chucks the (mechanical) kitten over his shoulder and instructs Eva Braun to murder the child (quite obviously played by a little adult). Lenny is made into a lampshade, which is eventually repatriated to the U.S. and posthumously awarded a Purple Heart by Truman. This is pretty much a waste of time, but I will say this. One, it's better made than Russell's "official" final film, The Fall of the Louse of Usher. Two, the fact that A Kitten For Hitler is designed to be offensive makes it an almost charming historical artifact. This was 2007, before any normal person had heard of 4ch*n or St*rmfront, back when a travesty like Jojo Rabbit would never have seen the light of day. Three cheers for free speech.

If you're so inclined, you can watch A Kitten For Hitler here.