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Stalingrad

Stalingrad

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This movie truly shows the horror of war.
Review: First of all, this movie is really brutal because it shows many gritty scenes of Germans doing suicidal actions. It starts off when a Storm Trooper unit is being transfered to Stalingrad. From there it begins many twists and turns for all the characters and show what the Germans had to go through. I was amazed that they nailed the whole battle and how the Germans lost their will to live. There are many scenes of suicide or suicidal request and a very depressing ending that echoes All Quiet on the Western Front.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: not as good as I hoped
Review: I was excited about this movie when I first got it. I was thinking, "finally, a realistic movie about the German side of war." But I was sorely disappointed. I got the VHS, but it was still quite a good quality. My main problem with this movie was that is was not realistic. German SS soldiers would not try to storm a factory head on, losing men. THey were trained to flank, supress, and generally out-perform troops, not commit all troops to a suicidal frontal attack against a heavily defended factory. And they wouldn't have a a single man to run up and throw a grenade and the factory. At least they would try to get multiple men to run forward seperated so that at least a few men could get a good grenade throw. But they would never do that anyway. I think what would have been better is to show all of the isolated, but extremely bloody skirmishes that occured countless number of times in Stalingrad. My favorite battle scene was the russian panzer attack in the winter. It was much more realistic, yet it still didn't make me involved in the action like SPR or Cross of Iron. Also, I thought Americans were the only film makers to have cheesy romances in war movies, but obviously Germans do too. It just wasn't too powerful. I wasn't involved with the characters. Das Boot was soo much better. I really cared about the characters. But here, it just seemed like all they were were flat cliches. Stick with Cross of Iron, however bad the DVD quality.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Stark, unforgiving look at the horrors of war
Review: Stalingrad precedes Saving Private Ryan as a visceral look at the horrors of war. Besieged by the Germans for months, the bitterly contested city looks appropriately as if it's been hit by an atomic bomb. The film relates not only how hard both the Germans and Russians fought over this city, but how the cruel Russian Winter exacerbated the situation and made the Germans' attempt futile.

The acting is very good in this film. We aren't meant to be sympathetic to the German soldiers. They are merely cogs in the Nazi war machine. Fallible characters who show both courage and cowardice in the process of the story. I found that it was best to watch the movie in its native German with English subtitles. You get a better feel for the emotional content of the words that are spoken, even if you are not fluent in the language.

The production values are excellent, as are the sets and costumes. This film, to my knowledge, is thoroughly convincing and makes you feel as if you've been drawn into the era to witness the terrible battle as it nears its conclusion. At the end, we see the beginnings of the terrible march to Siberia by German prisoners. Only five percent survived, but I'm sure the Russians would have been satisfied had none of them made the trip.

The only thing I might have wanted to see was a bit more of the perspective of the Russian troops, but I guess that might have made a long film a bit too long.

Truly an unforgiving and brutal anti-war film and not to be missed!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Gott nicht mit uns
Review: World War Two films are a genre which does not allow many diversions from the dominant pattern which has been set up by the Left-wing American cinema. It is an almost un-spoken rule that the Nazis are not to be portrayed as humans. Which is why a film such as Stalingrad is worth watching. It's a German film about the German military - the soldiers who fought and died for their country. To Hollywood, the Nazis are nothing more than "Jew-haters". But Stalingrad shows us they were human beings - something that doesn't sit well with Hollywood. Yep, it's an anti-war film but it comes from the side we're not supposed to care about. It's a powerful, painful film made to commemorate the failed German seige of Stalingrad. Director Joseph Vilsmaier had a $20 million budget -- huge for a German film -- and he spent lavishly on re-creating the details of enormously complex and chaotic scenes. Set in the waning months of 1942, Stalingrad follows with nightmarish accuracy the German Sixth Army's disastrous attempt to take the Russian port city of the title. As seen through the eyes of four German stormtroopers and their idealistic lieutenant, it's less a strategically prepared assault than a mind- and soul-numbing exercise in carnage, random slaughter, and futility. Hardly a surprising tack for the producers of Das Boot to take, but unlike Wolfgang Petersen's 1981 submarine opus, Vilsmaier's film is all over the map (literally), slogging through the perpetually grimy wasteland that was war-torn Russia. Rollo (Nickel), Gege (Rudolph), Otto (Groth), and Haller (Okras) are the four chief protagonists, led by their handsome, young commanding officer Hans von Witzland (Kreischman). Vilsmaier has a way with his camera set-ups, keeping the two-hour-and-15-minute film steadily creeping along toward its inescapable conclusion without allowing the viewer time to grow restless. In the end, Stalingrad proves to be the equal, if not better, to Platoon and Full Metal Jacket. Easily superior to the dreadful Enemy at the Gates.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Stalingrad-social realism without the heroism
Review: I loved this movie for its accuracy and for the portrayal of German soldiers breaking down slowly as they despairingly realize they are the victims of their own officers. The psychological disintegration of the men rang true. What was missing for me was that one element- the heroism of the Russian people. The people of Stalingrad were trapped. They fought the Nazis knowing that there was no escape from death. They faced Nazi bullets knowing the Red Army stood ready to execute them if they broke under fire, or failed to attack. I wanted to hear their voices, feel their will to endure and their own despair.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Absolute shock
Review: This is without doubt the greatest war movie ever made. I say this in the sense of being an anti-war movie, by portraying the events on a human level such as 'The Thin Red Line'. The suffering and agony of the 6th army in that fateful winter of 1942 is portrayed here with nothing left to the imagination. I must say that I find it sad that some of the other reviewers can see history in such a black and white perspective - Oh my gosh can there really be Germans that weren't evil! (By the way in reference to another review there were no Tiger tanks at this stage of the war. They were introduced at the counter attack at Kharkov) In wars of this kind of scale and magnitude there are no winners. Personally I was shocked after viewing it for the first time, but I felt relieved to see this kind of movie instead of another Hollywood how America won the war glorification. Thank goodness for a movie that finally depicts life on the eastern front and doesn't kiss arse to the supposed moral police. After all the war in Europe was won and lost on the easter front. Just check the enormous casualties compared with other theatres of war. Bring on a movie about the Waffen-SS!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: What a disappointed movie I ever saw
Review: Stalingrad, was one of the greatest and bloody battle in the history, involved thousands of Aircrafts and Tanks, and million of soldiers. From this movie, you won't see any of those pic, you won't see any German Tiger Tanks, or any great battle, you will find only 2 German half-tracked but non operated, only 10 Russia T-34 tanks but were easily destroyed by 12 poor equipped and exhausted German soldiers. I will say that in 150 mins film long, 135 mins are seeing German soldiers walking around or mumming to each other, even the other 15 mins of fighting are boring and full of non-sense. Compare with Hollywood movie, this Germany made movie is a cheap product, and totally waste of your time. I will recommend others to see this movie if they want to know what is the worst WWII movie. Be honest, I am a real fans of WWII movie, "Saving Private Ryan", "Pearl Harbour", "Eagle has landed", "Kelly's heroes", "Bridge too Far", "D-day" any of those is much better than this one, I would like to give 0 star to this movie, which is a disaster of WWII movie.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: So disappointed
Review: Compare with Hollywood movie, the movie is so boring and full of disappointed. Stalingrad, was one of the greatest battle in history, with millions of soldiers, thousands of tanks. If you expected such kinda screen, you are totally wrong. No bloody screen, slaughter pic, I don't see any German Tiger Tank, but only 2 non-operated half-tracked. Also only 8 of T-34 were shown but were totally destoryed by 12 of poor condition, poor equipped German Soldier, it was non-sense. I brought this movie, because I read the recommandation from this board, I was so disappointed. Now I warn others, this movie is only a cheap production and totally waste of your time. Too bad, I will say this movie worth no star from me. I wonder if amzon will post my review, cause it will definately harm their business in selling this boring movie. By the way I am not a 13 kid, I am 40 now.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: So intense I had to watch it twice.....
Review: Stalingrad is a war epic that rivals any other war epic you may have ever seen, with one added element you have never experienced.... it's told from the German soldier's perspective... and it will blow your mind.

The true tale of one of WWII's most gruesome battles, this film is BIG in production, BIG in storyline and BIG in character development. Gripping is an understatement on all fronts, and the the Russian front for German soldiers was gripping for sure.

The DVD offers the film in both original German and English, so don't let the foreign film origination of this title scare you away. I am not a big foreign fan, but I ended up watching it twice. The first time through it I listed to it in English. I was so taken aback with the film that I re-watched it in German. Let me tell you.....listening in German made it even more real.

I recommend this film to ALL. It's spectacular!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Starvation,hypothermia,fear.
Review: This was an excellent movie. I say this because the night after watching it I woke up several times with scenes vividly in my mind. I can say this rarely happens. Saving Private Ryan had a similar but much less intense effect. After viewing this you will wake up shivering from cold and terror of that rumbling T-34 trying to grind you into Mother Russia. This war movie was overcritiqued by many other reviewers. I have not been viscerally moved by any other war as much as this one.


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