Cross of Iron (1977)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Sam Peckinpah

Writers:

Julius J. Epstein (writer)
James Hamilton (writer)

Release Date:

28 January 1977 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama | War

Tagline:

The Power of Peckinpah Has Never Been So Real...Or So Brilliant!

Plot:

In 1943, in the Russian front, the decorated leader Rolf Steiner is promoted to Sergeant after another successful mission...

Plot Keywords:

Squad | Sergeant | WWII | Soldier | German Soldier

Awards:

1 win

Cast

James Coburn	...	Unteroffizier / Feldwebel Rolf Steiner
Maximilian Schell	...	Hauptmann Stransky
James Mason	...	Oberst Brandt
David Warner	...	Hauptmann Kiesel
Klaus Löwitsch	...	Unteroffizier Krüger
Vadim Glowna	...	Gefreiter Kern
Roger Fritz	...	Leutnant Triebig
Dieter Schidor	...	Anselm
Burkhard Driest	...	Schütze Maag
Fred Stillkrauth	...	Gefreiter Schnurrbart ('Private Mustache') (as Fred Stillkraut)
Michael Nowka	...	Dietz
Véronique Vendell	...	Marga
Arthur Brauss	...	Pg. Zoll
Senta Berger	...	Eva
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Robert Rietty	...	German Officer (voice)

Also Known As:

Steiner - Das Eiserne Kreuz (West Germany)

Runtime:

132 min | USA:119 min

Country:

UK | West Germany

Language:

English | Russian | French | German

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

West Germany:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Australia:MA (cable rating) | Australia:M (alternate rating) | Australia:R (original rating) | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Italy:T | Norway:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | Singapore:NC-16

Filming Locations:

Obrov, Slovenia

Company:

EMI Films

Trivia:

The pistol Stransky draws to shoot the teenage Russian prisoner at the first meeting with Steiner is a Model 1934 Beretta.

Goofs:

Factual errors: During Sgt Steiner's hospitalization for wounds, he yells from the hospital balcony to a driver below, "Corporal, hold that truck!" However, the rank insignia on the driver's shoulder straps clearly indicates that he is a Senior Sergeant.

Quotes:

Unteroffizier Krüger: I stay dirty for a reason. If you've been in the field as long as I've been, you'd know why.
Sargeant Steiner: Explain.
Unteroffizier Krüger: Natural body oils, combined with dirt, can keep you waterproof.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Windtalkers (2002)

Soundtrack:

Im Feldquartier

Best War Film there is

I still rate this as the best and most honest war film I've seen. It ignores the Hollywood schmaltz that spoiled Saving Private Ryan and manages to portray the soldiers as human beings and particularly for German soldiers this is an exception. The battle scenes are expansive and very bloody as we follow the German platoon trying to get back to its own lines. The soldiers are heroes in an unheroic war and the film captures the chaos, cynicism and heroism of the German retreat. Well worth checking out.