The Russian German War

Starring:Jerry Lawton
Studio: Janson Media
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

Like Saving Private Ryan, Enemy at the Gates opens with a pivotal event of World War II--the German invasion of Stalingrad--re-created in epic scale, as ill-trained Russian soldiers face German attack or punitive execution if they flee from the enemy's advance. Director Jean-Jacques Annaud captures this madness with urgent authenticity, creating a massive context for a more intimate battle waged amid the city's ruins. Embellished from its basis in fact, the story shifts to an intense cat-and-mouse game between a Russian shepherd raised to iconic fame and a German marksman whose skill is unmatched in its lethal precision. Vassily Zaitzev (Jude Law) has been sniping Nazis one bullet at a time, while the German Major Konig (Ed Harris) has been assigned to kill Vassily and spare Hitler from further embarrassment.

There's love in war as Vassily connects with a woman soldier (Rachel Weisz), but she is also loved by Danilov (Joseph Fiennes), the Soviet officer who promotes his friend Vassily as Russia's much-needed hero. This romantic rivalry lends marginal interest to the central plot, but it's not enough to make this a classic war film. Instead it's a taut, well-made suspense thriller isolated within an epic battle, and although Annaud and cowriter Alain Godard (drawing from William Craig's book and David L. Robbins's novel The War of the Rats) fail to connect the parallel plots with any lasting impact, the production is never less than impressive. Highly conventional but handled with intelligence and superior craftsmanship, this is warfare as strategic entertainment, without compromising warfare as a manmade hell on Earth. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Cat and Mouse.......2007-05-10

Set during the fall of Stalingrad in World War two, "Enemy at the Gates" focuses on Vassili Zaitsev, a poor soldier who has a gift for sharp shooting. That gift comes to the attention of Commisar Danilov, who sees Zaitsev as a political propaganda coup for an ailing Russian military. The Germans call in a sniper of their own, a Major Konig, to deal with this sniper who is growing in fame.

The tension is thick in this movie, as the two snipers stalk each other. However, around them is the maelstrom of the Battle of Stalingrad. The stark realities of the Russian army are very realistic, with soldiers sharing a single weapon, living in horrid conditions, and suffering badly.

The attempts of the political officers to exploit Zaitsev for their own goals are also highlighted. Their sometimes cynical use of people to advance the glory of the Motherland is sometimes horrible to contemplate and view.

The movie is earthy and real, and the acting is excellent. Jude Law is great in the lead roll. I was very impressed with the cast of the movie.

Not an action filled gore-fest like We Were Soldiers (Widescreen Edition), it is certainly realistic in its depictions. It is a good movie with lots of tense moments. I enjoyed this movie a lot.

not bad but not as good as the original novel.......2007-04-27

david robbins' original novel is a very enjoyable reading experience. he vividly painted a desperate russian picture in wwll, the siege of stalingrad, the duel between two great snipers. jude law and ed harris both did great jobs in this movie. the good thing of this movie is that the ideological part was lightly touched to avoid possibility of boredom. the battle scenes were nicely and vividly arranged and carried out. the russian political officer with a horsey face was the only weak actor resulted in bad casting.

A classic war movie!.......2007-04-03

I love WWII movies. This one is a modern classic. Don't miss it!

A Battle that was won by other means.......2007-03-25

[...]I watched the movie on TV recently without knowing beforehand whether the actual figures and plot were real or fictional.

The three central characters, two of whom at least were apparently real, make up the eternal triangle. The Russian sniper is the hero ( he was taught to shoot very accurately by his wolf-hunting grandfather: "put snow in your mouth so the wolf won't see your breath). He is made a hero by his would-be rival, the lovelorn Jewish Communist Party Commissar in charge of battle site propaganda. They are both in love with the lovely Jewish Soviet infantry heroine who plans to go and farm in Palestine if she survives the war.

The filmmakers, bending the truth, have made the sharp shooting activities of the particular hero a critical part of the whole Battle of Stalingrad. If the hero gets killed it will be a national tragedy, if not a disaster, For the Germans, if their sharpshooter is killed, who is shipped in from Berlin in a Pullman train specifically to wipe out the hero, it will be a humiliation. so much so the Nazi Major is told by General Paulus to remove his dog tags in case he falls. If you believe the film plot the duelling was apparently set up on purpose as part of the commissar's propaganda (I don't know if Danilov the commissar is real or fictional). Such a duel did take place but was probably not central to the Battle of Stalingrad (which was won in 1943 when the Russians surrounded the Germans who found themselves enclosed in the city and forced the whole army to surrender including the General). The victory is celebrated near the end of the film but it does not explain how the it came about, though no doubt the dogged resistance inside the city was very important.

The war action -particularly in the first half hour of the movie - is very graphic and exciting and more realistic than most war films. The romantic line , apparently real, between hero and heroine adds tone to what would otherwise be just another bang-bang movie for 100 minutes. I believe there is even a computer game based on the film that concentrates on the shooting gallery aspect. The film makers do successfully, if not entirely completely, put the Battle of Stalingrad in its perspective as arguably the turning in point in the European theatre of World War II, that drained Hitler's forces. But they do not explain that without the Russian victory at Stalingrad in 1943 the allied invasion of Normandy would have been impossible in 1944 and World War II would have been prolonged (assuming that America would have hesitated to us the atomic bomb it developed in 1945 against Europeans).

The action part of the movie is mainly focused on the Russian sharpshooter's duel with the elegant German sniper sent to cut him down. Action narrows from the opening mass battle scenes to a handful of Russian sharp shooters, who fall one by one to the cunning German ace and ends up with a one-on-one Western type gun duel. The sense of war is hell pervades the atmosphere of a ruined city in which fighting is from building to building. The Germans appear to have an air advantage and an ability to drop bombs with devastating impact but their tanks, confined by narrow alleys amid the ruins are not much help. I recently saw actual footage of the Battle in a German documentary on TV and the fountain featured early in the film also appears as it really was though not piled high with dead bodies. Not being a World War II expert I cannot quibble with the many minor historical mistakes that have been identified by purists but even if I were aware of them when I viewed the film it wouldn't have made much difference to my enjoyment. The cast all round is superb, especially the principal characters. My only complaint is the Hollywood type ending. The temporarily separated lovers meet in hospital before the final fade out In real life they both assumed each other were dead and didn't find the truth for many year afterwards. That would have been , in my opinion, a better ending than the fictional one contrived for no good reason by the filmmakers.Isn't it enough that both survived? Surely the assumption that American box offices need happy endings (if that was the reason for a dumb they lived happily ever after ending) is outdated?

An Engrossing Story of Two Man Hunters: Deserves More Credit Than it Receives.......2007-03-14

For what it's worth, this film deserves more credit than it is frequently given. I think that most criticisms of the film stem from the reviewers entering the film with certain preconceived notions about how what the film was going to be, only to be let down. I don't blame the reviewers entirely. ENEMY AT THE GATES is a little unsure of what it wants to become. Should we make a film that accurately captures the battle of Stalingrad? Should we, instead, focus on the wonderful story of these two rival snipers? Or should we try and communicate an even more personal story about love and the evils of war? Unfortunately, ENEMY AT THE GATES tries to accomplish all three and, if judged by any single standard, ultimately fails.

Let me take them in turn. ENEMY AT THE GATES begins in a manner quite reminiscent of SAVING PRIVATE RYAN. After a quick character development scene in which we see our young protagonist being taught how to stalk and snipe a wolf, we suddenly see him thrust amongst the Red Army, railed off to the shores of the Volga River, and thrown into the midst of a German siege. The opening is spectacular and moving. Thousands of Russian soldiers are being ferried across the Volga while German dive bombers and artillery decimate their numbers. As if that isn't bad enough, those wise enough to try and flee the fight are mercilessly gunned down by their own Russian commanders. While some have criticized this movie for historical accuracy, such things did occur. And just in case you think I'm trying to demonize the Russian commanders, ENEMY AT THE GATES provides these men with plenty of motivation. They are the ones who must answer to the high command, who demand victory at all costs. What would we do? Of course, this film is not perfectly historically accurate. From this point on, we do not get much story about the battle for Stalingrad. The ending of the film leaves the outcome of this battle completely mysterious. If you came looking for a movie purely about the battle and the Russian front, you came to the wrong place. While I think that the action scenes are skillfully handled, this is obviously not where the film's interest lies.

What is the interest? It is about the incredible struggle, based on true events, that occurred during the battle. For while both armies attack each other brutally, two men endlessly hunt each other, putting each other's skill to the ultimate test. Our protagonist, Vassili Zaitsev (Jude Law), plays a Russian peasant who was taught by his grandfather how to shoot. An expert marksmen and natural talent, Zaitsev stalks the German army, proving his skill time and time again. Thanks to his friend Commisar Danilov (Joseph Fiennes), a political officer in charge of the military press, Zaitsev soon becomes an iconic hero of the Russian army--a symbol of communist dominance over fascist Germany. Germany begins to take notice and sends out their best sniper to hunt the young Russian down. Killing him would deal a symbolic death blow to Russia. Germany's marksmen is Major König (Ed Harris), an aristocratic deer hunter and the instructor at the sniper school in Berlin. As soon as König enters the picture, ENEMY AT THE GATES takes a dramatic turn. Suddenly, the film is about the rivalry of these two men. For me, this is the most interesting storyline in the film. Both Ed Harris and Jude Law have an intensity about them, often communicated only by turning the camera on their eyes, that is perfect for the silent nature of the sniping scenes. I could have watched a whole movie dedicated to only these two marksmen. The sniping scenes are expertly handled, the background sets of war-torn Stalingrad are amazingly detailed and completely set the tone, and the tension and suspense of these scenes is high.

But, alas, ENEMY AT THE GATES does not simply decide to abandon an accurate portrayal of the battle for Stalingrad for a more focused piece on these two snipers. Instead, an infamous "love triangle" is introduced to the film to stir things up. I say "infamous" only because it seems to have ruined everyone's day if you read the reviews on this site. While I would agree that this "love triangle" is not the most interesting part of the film, I do think that it has some merit. For one thing, it provides Zeitsev with motivation towards the end of the film. In the beginning, he seems to have nothing to lose, fully aware that each day may be his last. He is fearless in his struggle against the Germans. But as he begins to fall in love with Tania Chernova (Rachel Weisz), suddenly he has something to lose. Furthermore, his love provides him ultimately with the confidence and determination to put an end to König, who has been seemingly invincible up until that point.

The really interesting question, I think, is why not just have a love interest? Why involve a love triangle with Commisar Danilov? Here, I think that the film shines, at least in conception if not in execution. The love triangle provides Commisar Danilov with his ever-increasing menace towards Zaitsev. It makes him abuse his power and become the kind of evil man he once feared. This, in turn, only heightens our love of the protagonist, as his natural goodness is depicted side-by-side with the evil of his friend. One thing that kept occurring to me as I watched this film was the question: Who is the bad guy? Is it the Germans? Is it Major König? Is it Danilov when he becomes enraged at his unrequited love for Tania? Is it Kruschev? Is it the Russian generals who shoot their own troops? It's hard to say! All that we know is that Vassili is good. Perhaps the filmmakers didn't want to glorify the Russians? The truth is that no one ends up very good in this film, besides our two lovers. War seems to bring out the worst in everyone, even Danilov. Perhaps that is what ENEMY AT THE GATES is trying to strive for with its inclusion of the love triangle. War is evil. And humans are only pawns in the game.

Ultimately, I enjoyed ENEMY AT THE GATES. In fact, I enjoyed it more the second time I watched it. You cannot really knock it for not being an accurate portrayal of the battle of Stalingrad. It is focused on two men in the middle of that battle. Every film must explore life's events through the eyes of a few characters. That's where the interest lies! Anything else would just be a third-person perspective on explosions and gunfire. While I wish the film could have focused even more on the sniping angle than it does, I believe it to be a respectable war film and one that is quite interesting.

Average customer rating:

Russia in the cold
A well produced and well acted epic
Stalingrad
Impacting
what a cruel and senseless war......

Stalingrad
Starring: Dominique Horwitz , Thomas Kretschmann , Jochen Nickel , Sebastian Rudolph , and Dana Vávrová
Director: Joseph Vilsmaier
Manufacturer: Fox Lorber
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: 6305037280
Release Date: 1998-11-03

Amazon.com

It's tempting to call this harrowing picture a World War II version of All Quiet on the Western Front: both films take the perspective of ordinary German soldiers at ground level. Stalingrad surveys the misery of the battle of Stalingrad, the winter siege that cost the lives of almost one and a half million people, Russian defenders and German invaders alike. Not unlike Spielberg's approach to Saving Private Ryan, German director Joseph Vilsmaier rarely steps outside the action to comment on the higher purpose of the war, assuming the audience is aware of the evil of the Nazi regime. Instead, we simply follow a group of soldiers as they endure a series of gut-wrenching episodes, events which have the tang of authenticity and horror. Vilsmaier has a taste for symbolism and surreal touches, which only add to the unsettling sense of insanity this movie conjures up so well. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews:

Russia in the cold.......2007-05-13

Life and death on the russian front. So few returned on either side.

A well produced and well acted epic.......2007-02-06

It is always a satifying experience to view a film in which none of the actors are familiar and be absolutely floored at their performances. Watching Stalingrad in German with English subtitles provides such an experience.
The battle of Stalingrad was a disaster for the German army and was instrumental in their ultimate defeat. A part of the European war that has not been featured in American films, the Russian front was brutal in terms of both the combat attrocities and the elements. This film captures a group of German soldiers who are thrust into these circumstances and spares the viewer nothing in recording the horrors of war.
It is not sympathetic to the German side and doesn't have any hint of nationalism or patriotism- it just lays out the story as factually as possible.
Indispensible viewing for history and WWII buffs. Right up there with Saving Private Ryan as the most realistic of WWII films.

Stalingrad.......2007-01-14

This was a very poor film of the seige of Stalingrad. The acting, plot, English dubbing and flow of the movie was of poor quality. Although it tried to show the suffering of both the Germans and Russians during seige of Stalingrad, the acting and characters in the movie were not interestng enough to hold your attention. Far below the overall quality of the other DVD I purchased at the same time, "Enemy at the Gates"

Impacting.......2007-01-09

Germany's war films are always very real and factual, they don't doll them up with grandeur and Rambo-type scenarios. They never give a false illusion of what it was like to be a German soldier in World War 2, the hopelessness in the end, the devastation of being in war you didn't want to be in that went on forever and knowing all along your chances of survival were very slim. (I have read a collection of letters of German soldiers from the front and those men were so very tired of war and just wanted to see home again.)

This film impacts all that real desperation felt by those men on the front lines. It's completely unbelievable how their officials in the end treated their own soldiers. How many of them were left to starved or freeze to death in Russia, completely abandoned by their own country on a frozen terrain.

Stats are given in the end of how many German soldiers surrendered in World War 2, to how many were actually taken prisoner (1/3 survived surrendering) to how many returned home after being taken prisoner and put in Prisoner of War Camps (15%) It makes you realize how hopeless their situation was and this film impacts that emotion in every sense.

My only complaint is that the subtitles went by a bit fast at times.

what a cruel and senseless war.............2007-01-05

it's the decisions by the leaders of the nations to declare and start a war. but their decisions are always made in their presidential offices, behind their desks. it's the foot soldiers to carry out their blundering decisions with blood and death. war is always senseless, bad for the soldiers but good for the officers and the generals. war and battle are the two great opportunities for them to get promoted. the foot soldiers would only be awarded with some worthless mass produced metal medals decorated with colored ribbons and paint, glorified with sounds-great big names: purple heart, silver star, iron cross...whatever. they are all the same, a worthless piece of metal.
the battle of stalingrad was one of the most horrible tragedies in our human history. to those soldiers who died in the bitterest russian cold winter, the only blessing is what the two german soldiers said before frozen to death: 'to die in bitter coldness is good, because you don't feel anything...better than dying in the desert, because it's too hot and you can't stop sweating....the only thing good to die in the desert is....those stars look so close....'
what a sad war story....

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Nazis on trial
A piece of history, stories that sadden ...

Verdict on Auschwitz
Starring: Edgar M. Boehlke , Herman Langbein , Joachim Kugler , and Dr. Fritz Baueur
Director: Rolf Bickel , and Dietrich Wagner
Manufacturer: First Run Features
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ASIN: B000MAFXQY
Release Date: 2007-04-17

Description

On August 20,1965, after 20 months of proceedings,the verdict was announced in one of the most significant trials in German legal history.The court heard 360 Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp survivors and otherwitnesses from 19 countries,in a trail against 22 membersof the S.S.,accused of taking part in the mass murder of millions. It is a documentary of immense importance by filmmakers Rolf Bickel and Dietrich Wagner. 180 mins b&w and color. 1993 German with English subtitles.

Customer Reviews:

Nazis on trial.......2007-04-26

From 1963 to 1965, twenty-two men, all former members of Hitler's SS who had served as officials at the Auschwitz death camp during World War II, were rounded up and put on trial in Frankfurt, Germany, for so-called "crimes against humanity" - a euphemistic phrase that is all too feeble in describing the unspeakable atrocities these incarnations of evil perpetrated on their fellow human beings. The documentary "Verdict on Auschwitz," made for German television in 1993 but not released theatrically in the United States until early 2007, provides a gripping, soul-searing account of that trial.

The 175-minute movie is divided into three sections that run roughly an hour apiece and cover slightly different aspects of the trial. The first, entitled "The Investigation," focuses on the German government's efforts in the late 1950's and early 1960's at tracking down many of the key Nazi leaders who had either fled the country (many to South America) or were living prosperous and quiet lives under assumed names in the very same country where they had perpetrated their crimes. Part I also details the early stages of the trial which included taped testimonies from a number of the survivors (over 350 in total), as well as from "outsiders" who visited the camp on "official" business. Because cameras were not allowed in the courtroom after the first fifteen minutes of the trial, these audio tapes, in many cases, have become our sole connection with the participants in the drama. These voices, echoing down the corridors of time, provide a chilling first hand account of the atrocities. In addition to the recordings, the film includes interviews with a number of the participants in the trial, newsreel footage of the camp both before and after its liberation by Russian forces, and, perhaps most chillingly, shots of Auschwitz as it appears today (or more accurately, in 1993), its dilapidated, abandoned buildings serving as mute, ghostly witnesses to the most mind-numbing human tragedy of the 20th Century.

The second part, labeled simply "The Trial," chronicles in greater detail the testimony and documentation the prosecution used to bolster its case over the two-year course of the trial (the Nazis were nothing if not efficient in recording their actions for posterity). The third part - "The Verdict" - wraps up the case with the closing statements by both the prosecution and the defense as well as final statements by the men on trial. Even though the "verdict" seems preordained from the start, there's no denying that there is an intensely purgative effect for both the victims and the rest of us in seeing these human monsters exposed for what they are and finally brought to justice, even if the sentences do not seem exactly commensurate with the gravity of the crimes.

Like any work of art that attempts to come to grips with the horrors of that period, "Verdict on Auschwitz" can go only so far in providing answers for an event for which no satisfactory answers could ever truly be found. Why in this particular place? Why at that specific time? And how could such seemingly rational, "civilized" individuals - most mere businessmen with wives and children of their own - forsake all sense of common decency and humanity, and coldly and methodically participate in the wide scale torture and wholesale extermination of so many of their fellow human beings? We will surely never know the answers to these questions, but a movie like "Verdict on Auschwitz" serves as a painful but invaluable reminder that such things have happened in the past and they could very well happen in the future (as they clearly are in various parts of the world at this very moment). The lesson of "Verdict on Auschwitz" is that we ignore such reminders at our peril.

A piece of history, stories that sadden ..........2007-04-23

Verdict on Auschwitz is a harrowing three-hour ordeal of history and personal recorded testimony, and a filmed record of the infamous Nazi excuse: I was just following orders. Rolf Bickel and Dietrich Wagner almost do too good a job, chronicling so many stories, so many details, and so much anguished testimony that the entirety is almost unbearable for a single viewing. This is a tale of men who committed monstrous crimes and a troubled German society that finds itself revisiting a dark past through the Frankfurt trials, lasting almost three years.

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. . . He Faces Free Men Here
Nevsky: Great Film? Probably. Great Propaganda Film? Absolutely
Anyone attacking Rus is treading on thin ice
Great movie, unrestored version
Beautiful propaganda

Alexander Nevsky
Starring: Nikolai Cherkasov , Nikolai Okhlopkov , Andrei Abrikosov , Dmitri Orlov (III) , and Vasili Novikov
Director: Sergei M. Eisenstein , and Dmitri Vasilyev
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
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Battleship Potemkin
Ivan the Terrible - Pt. 1
October (Ten Days That Shook the World)
Ivan the Terrible - Pt. 2
Andrei Rublev - Criterion Collection

ASIN: 630513104X
Release Date: 1998-10-21

Amazon.com essential video

Sergei Eisenstein's landmark tale of Russia thwarting the German invasion of the 13th century was wildly popular and quite intentional, given the prevailing Nazi geopolitical advancement and destruction at the time. It can still be viewed as a masterful use of imagery and music, with the Battle on the Ice sequence as the obvious highlight. Unfortunately, the rest of the film pales in comparison. A great score by Prokofiev was effectively integrated by the Russian filmmaker, but stands on its own merit as well. --Bill Desowitz

Description

Director Sergei Eisenstein's epic "Alexander Nevsky" features some of the most beautiful imagery ever put on film, a majestic music score by Prokifiev and a dazzling, climactic battle on a frozen lake.

Customer Reviews:

. . . He Faces Free Men Here.......2007-06-04

I just returned from a showing of this film to a live performance of the score by the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Of course, the musical performance was thrilling, but the film itself captivated me as well. I found the portrayal of early Russia through the Stalin-era perspective very interesting. The filmmaker's skill, especially in the battle sequences, is remarkable and produces quite an exciting film. I note the recurring theme shared with the movie 300 (sorry folks -- its there!) in defending one's home and way of life from conquering armies, and also the strategy of using the land itself as a weapon. I recommend the film as one of great interest for many reasons. Should you feel deprived of a good-quality performance of Prokofiev's score, there are many good recordings avaliable, including the St. Petersburg Philharmonic under Yuri Temirkanov (RCA Red Seal).

Nevsky: Great Film? Probably. Great Propaganda Film? Absolutely.......2007-05-28

I'll let others debate just how great a film Alexander Nevsky is. It certainly is one great propaganda film. It was made in 1938 when Stalin and Hitler were thinking about dancing on each other's grave. The story is how the Order of the Teutonic Knights invaded Russia in the 13th century and were defeated by the bravery of the Russian people under the inspired leadership of Prince Alexander Nevsky. The heart of the movie is the great battle to defeat the Germans; everything before the battle really is prologue, and everything after is a quick tidying up.

The knights are menacing and scary: armored men on big armored horses, wearing white, flowing robes with crosses and featureless helmets. They look like merciless automatons. The Russians are pictured as brave people of the soil, determined to protect Mother Russia and wanting only inspired leadership. They find this in Prince Nevsky.

The great battle between these two forces, held in the depth of winter, is the movie. The battle goes on and on, but you never get lost and never get bored. Eisenstein moves from masses of hacking, slashing soldiers to the actions of individuals in the melees, individuals whom we've come to know. He sets up the battle by having Nevsky explain clearly to his commanders (and to us) exactly what he wants them to do...let the charging wedge of knights penetrate his main force, then hold them at whatever cost, while he attacks from both flanks. At the start of the battle the Russians are massed with long pikes awaiting the knights. In the distance across the snow we see a long line of mounted knights, all with their white robes flowing in the wind. They gradually move faster and faster, growing larger and larger on the screen, until they crash into the pikes. The Russians give way in places creating corridors within their ranks where the knights are forced, and then all hell breaks loose.

The fighting is brutal, and not just with pikes, swords and arrows. Long hooks are used to yank the knights from their horses, then foot soldiers attack with heavy axes to smash through the armor. There are no great gouts of blood and spilled intestines, and this is long before Computer Generated Overkill, but there is no doubt about how brutal the fighting is.

At one point Prince Nevsky engages in one-to-one sword combat with the Master of the Teutonic Knights, humiliating him with his skill and then defeating and capturing him. The priests who accompanied the knights are all shown as venal opportunists, and all are slaughtered by the Russian fighters when the knights' camp is overrun. The Germans retreat, the Russians break through, and the remains of the German knights gather for a last stand on the ice. This is one of the great scenes in movies. As the Germans gather, the ice begins to break. The knights and their foot soldiers slip and crash into the water, some try to hold onto the ice and are overturned, some try to flee but the cracking ice catches them. We see helmeted men sinking below the surface, and then just their flowing white robes trailing behind them out of sight. It's something to see.

Throughout the movie Eisentstein creates great visual images. Some are vistas of snow and mountains, some gatherings of soldiers around a camp, some corpses strewn on a battlefield, some just two or three people talking. By modern standards this might sound arty, but I quickly became immersed in this style. It gave a kind of dignity and weight to the movie.

Eisenstein had Sergei Prokovief, one of the great composers of the 20th century, write the score for the movie. It is hugely effective.

Is this a great movie? I really don't know. But I'll bet Goebbels hated it.

Before I'd buy this version I'd check up on Criterion's Eisenstein: The Sound Years, which includes Ivan the Terrible parts I and II as well as Nevsky. Their transfer, video and audio, is great. Criterion also offers several significant extras.

Anyone attacking Rus is treading on thin ice.......2007-05-25

The year is 1242. Looks like Rus is being invaded by Teutonic Knights. There can be only one Roman Empire and Rus will be part of it in spite of its self. There is only one hope if the Ruskies are going to repel the Germans; they must employ a fisherman, Prince Alexander Nevsky (N. Cherkasov). Nevsky has had a recent reputation for repelling Swedish Invasion; he is a natural leader and a great tactician. The question is will this be enough to turn a country of peasants into a fighting machine strong enough to repel a religious fanatic professional army?

This film is a well designed (screen play by S. Eisenstein of "Battleship Potempkin fame) and executed film. The battle scenes are only surpassed by recent productions as in "Lord of the Rings" and I am not sure some of the scenes were borrowed from this film. On that note the action is supposed to be taking place in winter. However it was filmed in the summer. So they had to spread some silica mixture over the ground to look like snow.

An added plus is the film score that was created by S. Prokofiev who is best known for his music "Peter and the Wolf". The movie soundtrack is worth purchasing in its self.

Great movie, unrestored version.......2007-02-08

I can confirm that this is the unrestored version with the original, "unfinished" soundtrack. It also seems to be missing a bit of video scene; the part where Alexander challenges the Grand Master to combat seems to be missing, as we jump straight into the single combat scene. The subtitles are rather badly translated, as well.

I hope someone is able to restore the video print a little someday, and the new soundtrack should really be put on DVD as well. I'd rate the movie 5 stars, but this copy is not so good.

Beautiful propaganda.......2007-01-26

Helps to be a propagandist on the side that won. Leni Riefenstahl did not fare as well.

An amazing movie on a grand scale. A wonderful kick butt Russian lady who tears it up in the battle scenes. The inspiration for the successfull destruction of the invading army on the ice comes from a dirty story of a rabbit catching a fawn with its head caught between two birches and the rabbit "having his way with her". It is then the prince realizes how he can get the teutonic army with its head between two birches so he can have his way with them.

The whole bit of the prince raising a "people's army" to defeat the invaders played well to the Soviet dogma. I am sure a lot of it is very revisionist history. The peasants are delightfully crude and rude, but salt of the earth and brave. Much comic mileage regarding the two friends who initially go off to war hoping to best eachother in battle to win a real airhead lady who stays home. The smart one gets Vasilisa, the fighting lady, by saying really Vasilisa and his buddy were far braver than he. The less lucky and smart guy get the airhead.

I got to see it with a live orchestra doing the score. The music is so good you really want to get one with a revitalized soundtrack.

Average customer rating:

Less than I hoped
A revealing look at the horror that was the Eastern Front

The Russian German War
Starring: Jerry Lawton
Manufacturer: Janson Media
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

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Special Interests | Independently Distributed | Stores | DVD | Video

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( R ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B00029HJPS
Release Date: 2004-05-24

Description

The Russian-German War is a rare look at one of the worst horror stories in the long infamous history of warfare. For decades the Cold War prevented us from looking closely at what really happened between the Russians and the Germans on the Eastern Front during World War II. More than a struggle between nations, it pitted maniacal tyrant against maniacal tyrant, evil ideology against evil ideology. The lives of tens of millions of human beings were consumed by its raging hatreds and appalling indignities. One in every ten Russians died. One in every four Poles died. Whole divisions of Italians, Rumanians, Hungarians disappeared with barely a trace. An average of 17,800 people died on every single day - and this, the war on the Russian German Front, lasted for 1,400 days. The series is narrated with chilling precision by actor Douglas Rain. The script, by producer Jerry Lawton, is dark and powerful. The music, by composer Rick Hyslop, captures every nuance of tragedy with discordant clarity. The series features captured German and Russian film footage, much of which has never been seen in the United States.

Customer Reviews:

Less than I hoped.......2004-10-21

Perhaps this is more a case of high expectations than a poor product, but I was disappointed in this DVD. Let's start with the packaging; the case and sleeve art give the DVD a "home-made" look. Also, I thought this was a new documentary; on the contrary, it was originally produced in 1995. The narration is overly dramatic and the text adds nothing in the way of increased knowledge on the subject matter. The music is a distraction at best and annoying at worst. The one redeeming quality and why I did not rate it 1 star: there are MANY images and film clips that I have never seen in any other documentary covering the German/Russian conflict, and I have watched hundreds of hours on the subject. Overall, as a history lesson or for sheer entertainment value, I cannot recommend this product.

A revealing look at the horror that was the Eastern Front.......2004-06-28

One of the standard jokes on the television comedy "Hogan's Heroes" was that if Colonel Klink or Sgt. Schultz were not good, they would be sent to the Russian Front. As a result of the Iron Curtain descending upon the continent of Europe after World War II what we knew about the Eastern Front and the savage confrontation between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union was most informed speculation and supposition. This three-part documentary on "The Russian-German War" features captured German and Russian footage, most of which had never been seen in the West. This fascinating documentary gives us new insights into a clash that last almost four years and which saw an average of almost 18,000 people die EACH DAY.

"The Politics of Fear," the first episode in the series, looks at the uneasy alliance that existed between Hitler and Stalin after their division of Poland. Having conquered France, Hitler and his generals look towards the East, opening up a second front that would ultimately prove to be the undoing of Nazi Germany. "The Killing Ground" starts with the brutal winter of 1941, the worst in well over a century, and ends with the Russian army forcing back the Nazi invaders, despite horrific losses. Hitler ordered his troops to fight to the last man, refusing to allow them to retreat. However, his orders only resulted in entire Armies being lost. "Breakout to Berlin" starts with the defense of Stalingrad in 1943 and the successful race by the Soviet Army to beat the Americans, British and French forces to Berlin. When Stalin's men found the charred remains of Adolf Hitler, you can truly say the Russian-German War was finally over.

Amazon.com

Product Description

An all-star cast lights up the screen in this riveting epic hailed as "a vivid dramatization of one of history's titanic turning points". (Gene Shalit, TODAY) The year is 1942 and the Nazis are cutting a deadly swath through Russia. Under the leadership of Kruschev (Bob Hoskins), the citizens of Stalingrad are mounting a brave resistance, spurred by the exploits of their local hero, Vassili Zaitsev (Jude Law). An expert sniper, Vassili's deeds have become legendary - thanks to propaganda produced by Vassili's best friend, a political officer named Danilov (Joseph Fiennes). To stop Vassili, the Germans dispatch their best sniper, Major Konig (Ed Harris), to Stalingrad. When Vassili and Danilov both fall in love with a beautiful soldier (Rachel Weisz), Danilov deserts his friend, leaving Vassili to face his German counterpart alone. As the city burns, Vassili and Konig begin a cunning game of cat and mouse, waging a private war for courage, honor and country.

Customer Reviews:

Cat and Mouse.......2007-05-10

not bad but not as good as the original novel.......2007-04-27

A classic war movie!.......2007-04-03

I love WWII movies. This one is a modern classic. Don't miss it!

A Battle that was won by other means.......2007-03-25

An Engrossing Story of Two Man Hunters: Deserves More Credit Than it Receives.......2007-03-14

Average customer rating:

Battle of Stalingrad

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

World War II | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B000JM3JKC

Product Description

The Soviet view of the classic battle that changed the course of the war in favor of the Allies. Rare captured German footage was used that is not found in any other documentary produced by the Allies. USSR, 1960, B&W, 90 minutes with English commentary.

Average customer rating:

Clear Skies
Starring: Oleg Tabakov , Yevgeny Urbansky , Georgy Georgiu , Petr Kiryutkin , and Vladimir Anisko
Director: Grigori Chukhrai
Manufacturer: Kino Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Forty-First
Jean Renoir Collection (3-Disc Collector's Edition)
Crossroads/Daybreak
Fires on the Plain - Criterion Collection
Overlord (Criterion Collection)

ASIN: B000NJISD4
Release Date: 2007-04-17

Average customer rating:

Garpastum / Harpastum
Director: Aleksey German
Manufacturer: ORT
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Product Description

CHulpan Hamatova, Gosha Kucenko i Fedor Bondarchuk v hudozhestvennom fil'me Alekseja Germana mladshego "Garpastum". Dejstvie edinstvennogo rossijskogo fil'ma uchastnika osnovnoj programmy venecianskogo kinofestivalja 2005 goda razvorachivaetsja v nachale veka. Evropa v ozhidanii pervoj mirovoj vojny. Ubijstvo v Saraevo jercgercoga Ferdinanda uzhe vskolyhnulo staryj svet, no chetverka uvlechennyh futbolom druzej, po neskol'kim prichinam jetogo ne zamechaet. Brat'ja Andrej (Evgenij Pronin) i Nikolaj (Danila Kozlovskij) sidjat na meli. Ih otec, byvshij sportivnyj mecenat, razorilsja i soshel s uma posle katastroficheskogo dlja ego finansov porazhenija sbornoj Rossii so schetom 0:12 na olimpiade 1912-go goda. Mat' - umerla. I teper' molodye ljudi idut probovat'sja na match s anglichanami, rabotajuwimi v Peterburge. Otkaz dlja rebjat ne povod dlja unynija i oni reshajut organizovat' sobstvennuju komandu. Tol'ko dlja jetogo nuzhno vykupit' pole i chetverka nachinaet igrat' v futbol na den'gi s gruzchikami, studentami i gazetchikami... No jepoha diktuet svoi realii. Molodost', futbol, ljubov', Serebrjanyj vek perepletajutsja s vojnoj i smert'ju. Nikolaj uhodit v armiju, a odin iz druzej pogibaet v razborke. ZHizn' nespravedliva, no brat'ja objazatel'no ewe vernutsja k igre v mjach, pust' dazhe na dvore budet sovsem drugaja jera. JEra, lishennaja pojeticheskogo sharma, gde na smenu pen'juaram prishli kozhanye kurtki, a vmesto, figurirujuwih v fil'me, Vertinskogo i Ahmatovoj - molodye revoljucionnye pojety iz gluhih dereven'.

Check-up on the Roads / Proverka na dorogakh - Russian Soundtrack Only

Average customer rating:

Check-up on the Roads / Proverka na dorogakh - Russian Soundtrack Only

Manufacturer: Lenfilm
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Art House & International | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Foreign & International | Stores | DVD | Video
ASIN: B000FABM3E

Product Description

The winter of 1942. A partisan detachment commanded by lieutenant Ivan Lokotkov, a former countryside militiaman, operates in one of the north-west areas of Russia occupied by fascists. Partisans are starving, the villages around are destroyed. The commander decides to seize a fascist trainload of food at the railway junction every meter of which is being guarded. Lazarev, a former policeman, who collaborated with fascists but began to feel strong remorse promised to carry out the operation. But can he be trusted? The film with the original title Happy New Year Operation was shelved immediately after shooting and opened up for the public show in 1985.

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