The Damned

Visconti on the rise of Nazism as reflected within a German industrialist family in the '30s is as operatic and overblown as you'd expect, often to extremely impressive effect. But the overall languorousness finally swamps even the carefully elaborated decadence, making heavy going of otherwise interesting performances from Bogarde and Rampling. And the indulgence of Helmut Berger (who debuts in drag, impersonating Dietrich) is already unmistakeable.