Viggo Mortensen is about to play a Nazi. He’ll star in the upcoming movie Good, a film adaptation of a stage play by CP Taylor with the same name, according to Production Weekly.
Viggo, going against his usual gun toting, sword swinging type, will play a German professor in the 30’s who allows himself to be seduced by the Nazi party. Proof that even educated people can be lured in by carefully disguised propaganda. For further proof, take a look at some of the idiots out there protesting The Da Vinci Code. As the professor gets deeper and deeper into the Nazi movement, he’s able to rationalize everything, right up to betraying his family, his Jewish friends, and his own morality. The story ends with him standing in an SS uniform at Auschwitz happily marching Jews to their deaths.
It sounds like a fascinating look at the way in which moral, intelligent people can rationalize themselves into willingly supporting immoral, heinous, oppressive policies. A good reminder in an era where extremist religious zealots of all religions are pushing the world for a return to an era of repression in the name of religious freedom and morality.
It may seem like a pretty heavy topic for the guy who played Aragorn to cover, but it’s all part of his move away from traditional blockbusters (which haven’t worked for him outside of Lord of the Rings) towards heavier, arty movies. He won acclaim last year starring in David Cronenberg’s A History of Violence and he’s already working on another for Cronenberg called Eastern Promises opposite Naomi Watts.
Good starts shooting in Germany some time next year, with Jason Isaacs and Mark Strong in the cast alongside Viggo. It’s directed by Vicente Amorin, a guy so obscure even IMDB has never heard of him.
