Heroes and Gay Nazis

Taking us to a world we never even imagined existed, controversial filmmaker Rosa von Praunheim tells the story of homosexual neo-Nazis in this outstanding non-fiction film. Since gay people starting identifying as such, there have always been extreme right-wing homosexuals. Praunheim takes into the hearts and souls of the conflicted gay men who align themselves with the far right of skinheads and Nazis. Focusing on André, Praunheim finds the perfect example of the gay Nazi. The filmmaker interviews not only André, but also his group of skinheads, who tolerate his sexuality. Praunheim also turns his camera on Bernd Ewald Althans, a professional Holocaust denier who now holds gay skinhead parties in Berlin. Praunheim interviews Nazi party officials and journalists who estimate that 10-15% of the neo-Nazi leadership is homosexual. He remember too the story of Ernst Röhm, an outstanding homosexual during nazi regimen who in 1934, as part of the Night of the Long Knives, was executed on Hitler's orders as a potential rival. The filmmaker says, “Some may be shocked that I do not take a stand in my film and do not portray neo-Nazis as monsters, but as people living their lives in dramatic contradiction.” Investigating this unusual phenomena should provide plenty of post-film discussion and controversy, just what provocateur Rosa von Praunheim intended.