Enemy at the Gates

In the desperate days of Stalingrad, Communist-Left wing dictator Josef Stalin and his henchmen threw any Soviet conscript that they could into the fire of Stalingrad. After all, Stalin did not want to lose his namesake city to Adolph Hitler. In the opening scene, the brutal Communists send men toward the German lines. Many are unarmed and ordered to pick up the rifles of the men who are killed ahead of them. When these men retreat, the Soviet Socialists kill them with their own machine guns. In this brutal war, the Russian sniper became a legend in this fiery maelstrom. I am not a big fan of Jude Law with that silly smile plastered on his face but he plays the role with some humility here and it works pretty good.

The problem with this movie is that historical inaccuracies. If one is to make a movie based upon an actual event, it really should try to stick to what really happened. To make matters worse, great actors were stuck into bad parts and they seemed to just sleep-walk through the thing. Plus, Jude Law does a terrible Russian accent, when he even tries. Just a waste of time AND money.

This is based on a true story from the Battle of Stalingrad. It tells how a sniper became a hero for publicity and morale. The first scene shows men crossing the river in the daytime! [Night crossings would prevent air attacks.] Wasn't there a Soviet Air Force to defend against those Stuka fighters? Were those soldiers only given one clip of ammunition? Next there is a charge against entrenched troops. Didn't they learn anything since WW I? [Or is this just symbolism and propaganda?] Vassily Zaitsev the shepherd knows how to shoot a rifle. Nikita Khrushchev is now in charge and asks for suggestions. Why not improve morale? The sniper's exploits are advertised for building morale. Women were used for sniper duty, successfully.

Vassily gets an experienced older sniper who studied in the German sniper school. The Germans use a captured soldier as lure to reveal a sniper's location. A young boy provides a story for a bar of chocolate. Major Koenig lays a clever trap, it almost works. Is that boy a double agent? Tanya and Vassily are nice to each other. There will be a new attack and Vassily is prepared for Koenig. Koenig is very clever to understand that boy, and lays a trap. Will wolf hunter Vassily become the hunted? Will personal emotion create an unneeded conflict? The film continues to the final showdown between Vassily and Koenig. Is it believable, or just a dramatic ending? Will Vassily meet Tanya for a happy ending?

The encircled German 6th Army surrendered at Stalingrad in February 1943. It was the end of the beginning. The Battle of Kursk in July 1943 marked the beginning of the end for Nazi Germany. You could read one book and learn a lot more than what you get from this entertainment; or most war films.

The opening scenes capture the realities of war almost as effectively as was done in "Saving Private Ryan." This movie does something that so many other WWII movies does so stupidly, though: It tries to drive a romance into the middle of a survival of the fittest mortal combat film. I don't mind such a thing in a work of fiction, but this movie is about the Battle of Stalingrad, which is probably the most important battle of WWII.

Actually, the film is about a legend that grew in Soviet Russia during WWII, and this story puts it into that great battle. The opening scenes are pure adrenaline pumping combat that is stark and terrible. As the film settles down, though, we begin to focus in on a highly politicized duel between a pair of snipers. One is a peasant from Russia. The other is a professional from Nazi Germany. They hunt for one another through the broken city of Stalingrad, each attempting to find their advantage against the other.

To be sure, the sniper scenes are a bit far fetched, the love story is strange, the political drama overdone. The mass combat is spectacular. Watch this film for a look at that for yourself. The climax is ridiculous, especially for a sniper war. I suggest that you watch this film once just to get an idea of the nature of combat between the professional German army and the conscripted peasant army of the Soviet Union. It will give you a small look at the struggle that cost 20 million Soviets' lives.

Very powerful movie I've always enjoyed and now, my daughter is doing a report on the same. Thank goodness for continued excellent movie making !!! This is a movie that will certainly hold your attention and focuses on other aspects that certainly do occur during any war. Worth watching.