Character Relationship Map: Taking Sides

Characters

• Steve Arnold (played by Harvey Keitel) — protagonist

  Steve Arnold is the U.S. Army major assigned to conduct Wilhelm Furtwängler’s denazification interrogation after the Allied victory. Following General Wallace’s orders, he seeks evidence to condemn th...

• Wilhelm Furtwängler (played by Stellan Skarsgård) — protagonist

  Wilhelm Furtwängler is the celebrated German conductor at the center of the denazification hearing. He remained in Germany during the Nazi period, performed for official occasions, and is interrogated...

• David Wills (played by Moritz Bleibtreu) — supporting

  David Wills is a German-American Jewish lieutenant who works with Steve Arnold in the denazification office. He assists with the investigation of Wilhelm Furtwängler, but gradually develops sympathy f...

• General Wallace (played by R. Lee Ermey) — supporting

  General Wallace is the U.S. Army general who directs Steve Arnold’s investigation after the Allied victory. He orders Arnold to find Wilhelm Furtwängler guilty, treating the conductor as a representat...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• David Wills → Steve Arnold (Professional Office Colleague) — Wills is assigned as Arnold's junior colleague.

  Arnold receives an office with Lieutenant David Wills, who works alongside him during the investigation.

• Steve Arnold → Wilhelm Furtwängler (Professional Interrogator And Subject) — Arnold investigates Furtwängler's conduct during the Nazi period.

  Arnold interrogates Furtwängler about remaining in Germany, performing for the Nazi government, and appearing at political events.

• General Wallace → Steve Arnold (Professional Commander And Investigator) — Wallace directs Arnold's investigation and defines its political objective.

  General Wallace assigns Major Steve Arnold to secure a guilty finding against Wilhelm Furtwängler at the denazification hearing.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• General Wallace → Wilhelm Furtwängler (Conflict Political Adversary) — Wallace treats Furtwängler as a symbolic target of postwar judgment.

  Wallace characterizes Furtwängler as representing what was rotten in Germany and orders Arnold to secure his conviction.

• David Wills → Wilhelm Furtwängler (Social Sympathetic Observer) — Wills develops sympathy for the conductor's position.

  The young Jewish American lieutenant begins to feel sympathy for Furtwängler during the investigation.

Story Analysis

The film examines moral judgment after war through an investigator's campaign against a conductor whose artistic identity coexists with compromised political circumstances.

Plot Progression

1. Music Under Fire — Furtwängler conducts in Berlin while an Allied air raid interrupts the performance. A Nazi minister advises him to escape abroad.
2. The Assigned Verdict — After the Allied victory, Wallace orders Arnold to secure a guilty finding. Arnold establishes an office with Wills and begins collecting testimony.
3. A Conductor On Trial — Arnold questions Furtwängler about staying in Germany and performing for the Nazi government. Witnesses provide both damaging accusations and evidence that he refused the Nazi salute.
4. Sympathy Against Strategy — The inquiry becomes more personal when testimony addresses Furtwängler's private behavior and professional jealousy. Wills grows sympathetic, increasing friction with Arnold.
5. The Evidence Afterward — Arnold admits that Furtwängler was later exonerated but claims the questioning damaged him. Archival footage leaves the conductor's relationship with power morally unresolved.