Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations

About Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations

Starting with a long and lyrical overture, evoking the origins of the Olympic Games in ancient Greece, Riefenstahl covers twenty-one athletic events in the first half of this two-part love letter to the human body and spirit, culminating with the marathon, where Jesse Owens became the first track and field athlete to win four gold medals in a single Olympics.

Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations is a 1938 documentary film directed by Leni Riefenstahl. Its themes are olympic games, xenophobia, beauty, and national socialism.

David Albritton appears as Self (uncredited), Arvo Askola as Self (uncredited), Jack Beresford as Self (uncredited), and Erwin Blask as Self (uncredited). Released in April 1938, it runs 127 minutes.

The screenplay is by Leni Riefenstahl. In the United States it streams on Criterion Channel and FlixFling.

Olympia Part Two: Festival of Beauty, Downfall, and The Great Dictator make useful companions to Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations, all filed under national socialist party and nazi. TMDB voters put it at 6.9 out of 10 across 128 votes and it carries a NR rating.