Many people are saying that Friedrich was evil...(spoilers)

...I don't think he was, and I don't think the trench was evil either.

The trench was a form of purgatory (it was neither evil nor good, it just was), and I saw Friedrich as some kind of 'dark angel', sent to test the souls of the fallen soldiers and determine if they should be allowed to go on to heaven, or maybe just to allow their souls to finally rest in peace.

Many have spoken of the concept of atonement, which I agree with, Friedrich is testing the strength of their souls and their ability to remain 'human' in light of the atrocious realities of war all around them. He is in effect giving them a chance to redeem themselves and release their souls from purgatory, and from the evil in their own minds.

At the end we see the same soldiers return to the trench and Friedrich raise his head with blazing eyes...he is clearly meant to be an 'other worldly' presence. I read into this the concept of 'those who do not learn from their mistakes are condemned to repeat them'. Every soldier must return to purgatory over-and-over again until they have cleansed their souls, and proven themselves worthy of being released and finding peace.

As for the 'evil' souls being sealed in barb wire, I saw this as their permanent 'hell', but a hell of their own creation, and their own choosing. At any time they could atone for their evil and be released from the wire and allowed to rest, but it must come from them; from their own souls, and from their own actions.

The religious character was interesting, the word 'charlatan' comes to mind with him, and that's his greatest evil, he hides behind religion to make himself seem more important and to protect himself, he also pretends to be something he is not, and we see how flimsy his faith really is by the end of the film, and how easily he is seduced into evil. His soul is weak, and that's what he must atone for in the end.

Another interesting concept worth exploring is that of 'self-forgiveness'. In the end Shakespeare does appear to forgive himself for his failures on the battlefield, and this also allows his soul to be released and given peace. Just a thought...

This is one heck of a film and one I enjoyed immensely.