Historically speaking, it shouldn't come as a huge surprise that Hitler and Stalin forged an alliance: the totalitarian demagogues stood on very similar footing as paragons of all that is base and evil when ruling their respective Germany and U.S.S.R. But the similarities run deeper than some might initially realize: both men grew up with abusive, domineering fathers and overprotective mothers; both shunned their backgrounds and expressed disdain over their physical appearances; and both rose to power with an iron fist at exactly the same moment in history. This documentary special from The History Channel draws these and other parallels between the two men in an attempt to ascertain what emotional, psychological, psychosocial and mental factors could prompt an individual to lead a nation to ruin and commit mass genocide - the Great Purge in Stalin's case, the Final Solution in Hitler's. In relaying its disturbing yet illuminating account, the program utilizes such elements as rare archival footage, incisive analysis from historians and psychologists, and much more.
