Alech Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 I just saw the German movie "Stalingrad" for the second time (first time was 10 years ago), and it got me thinking, how "real" is it? -Alech [ July 20, 2004, 08:48 PM: Message edited by: Alech ] 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Dorosh Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 Not at all; for a movie not made in California, it is exceptionally "Hollywood." Real military practices are mostly ignored, though the scene with the T-34s isn't bad. The acting is good. The uniforms and set dressing are well above average. Haircuts are perfect, and the general "look" of the actors is great, made especially more realistic because they are actual German actors. Some rare kit shown, too (flamethrowers, smoke grenades, flare pistol, anti-tank magnetic mine, 5cm PaK in action, demolition charges, and my favourite, the signal wire reel which was also shown in Enemy at the Gates). The plot has inconsistencies and relies way too much on coincidence. Stalingrad was a battleground for a million German and Russian soldiers, and yet the same group of pioneers (with a captain wearing infantry insignia) manage to keep running into a) the same military police captain the same Russian babeski c) the same Russian boy Everywhere they go? Does approach the question of German atrocities but seems too simple a treatment. And of course only the Nazis are mean and evil. I am sure in real life there were many committed Nazis who were basically good (Rommel comes to mind, dalem mentions Stauffenberg in another thread) while there were probably many truly cruel bastards in the German Army who did it without respect to "Nazi" beliefs. The description of combat is simplistic too; the same old Hollywood version of having a huddle like in a football game and then everyone running at the enemy. Some very European touches too - everyone dying in the snow at the end (not that it wasn't true to life...) or the scene where the coward gets killed by a shell and the German stops to shout over his shoulder "Told you so, you idiot!" 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alech Posted July 21, 2004 Author Share Posted July 21, 2004 Good points. Heh, I just realized I put this in the wrong forum. I'll go double post. -Alech 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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