Conspiracy theories – total madness

It is people of different ages who are apparently living together in a municipal-like shared apartment and their everyday life, as is so common in the late capitalist world of prosperity: homework is performed, Youtube and Tikok videos are shot, vegan food prepared, paid attention to health and dampen in the fitness room.

At first glance, the group, which we can observe here in the almost 100-minute documentary “Soldiers of Light” by Julian Vogel and Johannes Büttner during their activities. The leader, David, who is the artist name »Mr. RAW «has obviously a social media influencer, he is constantly and very quickly talking, hugging people, taking up videos, a creator type-a human catcher for simple minds. David is also black, in one scene he tells of his experiences with everyday racism. According to Ko-director Büttner, he commented on this passage with the words after the finished film was seen: “Perhaps the spectators are more gracious to me when they hear why I have radicalized so.”

David and his actually inconspicuous group doubt the legitimacy of the German state and believe in comprehensive manipulation of all areas of life through sinistro forces that the “Deutschland-GmbH” dominate. From this, well, knowledge adults all kinds of omnipotence fantasies and ultimately a parallel reality, which can basically be adapted to their own needs for recognition and, above all, those according to enrichment. We watch here how a reality will be “created” that will lead to all the knowledge of science. David alias »Mr. Raw «and the others who have never completed a degree see themselves as experts and experts for everything. They call their parallel world “Kingdom of Germany”.

David recommends a cancer patient to drink herbal teas and to do exercises on an “infrared mat”: “The cancer dies when the temperature is over 42 degrees.” A man who “Peter, who calls himself” and apparently represents the monarchical head of the kingdom sect, clarifies in small round: ” … For example, we now had one who got a child. Home birth. Without birth certificate. And then the uterus lowered, the whole abdomen was full of inflammation. I changed the probabilities, so I did a spontaneous healing with her. “

However, the film does not leave it to show this madness. In addition to David, Peter and other gurus, the directors focus on the fate of a young man named Timo, who works in the group and is also “treated” by David. Timo has to work for hours a day, of course unpaid, fasting cures must endure and the like. The young man is more slave than a real member of the community. After all, he flees back to his parents’ house without being able to really let the ideology indoctrinated. While he is threatening to lose every hold, the gurus of the scene is happy to enrich themselves with their machinations.

David and others are convinced. They are about a “higher cause”, only it is in no way in the conflict with capitalist exploitation. Ultimately, David is simply an entrepreneur who wants to abolish any form of employee rights and do not want to pay taxes. Like any other nasty capitalist. And then you need a lawless fantasy kingdom, in which there are no longer any community security systems and needs: Solidarity is simply liquidated here as a central social concept of the civilized world or laid on a personal level: the guru takes care of the weak (by responding to you all day)- who needs the state, taxes, minority, workers?

The perfect madness is not shown here as something opposite the capitalist society, but as an extreme form of our usual social manners. For capital, people are only added value producers.

One of the most terrible scenes in the film shows David with Timo in recordings for a Tikok video or the like. »Mr. RAW «devilts to Timo and his audience:” We’ll show you what Timo looked like when he came to us. As he has increased through f anir raw food and how mentally his constitution has changed, because this will be seen immediately in the video. Say again ›All the best ‘, Timo!« Next to him is an infinitely exhausted, emaciated young man, who does not like a smile and scurries over his lips instead of the desired »all the best!« Later he has to grow his stomach. David films a “sixpack” that Timo supposedly got. The filmmakers do not follow David’s mobile phone camera, which shows Timos alleged muscular chest, but continue to focus on the face of the pitiful, David deliberately do not find out. This small cinematic trick alone exposes the fence from »Mr. Raw «, who is now filming Timos Lendenge and constantly talking about how great he is. Unbearable clowning.

One hopes that victims and perpetrators, manipulators and manipulated can still be helped professionally. Like society that arises.

“Soldiers of Light”, documentary, Germany 2025, directed by Julian Vogel and Johannes Büttner, in the cinema from August 14.