Stalingrad (1993)

The story follows a group of German soldiers, from their Italian R&R in the summer of 1942 to the frozen steppes of Soviet Russia and ending with the battle for Stalingrad.

Director:

Joseph Vilsmaier

Writers:

Jürgen Büscher, Johannes Heide

Stars:

Dominique Horwitz, Thomas Kretschmann, Jochen Nickel

3 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dominique Horwitz	...	Fritz Reiser
Thomas Kretschmann	...	Hans von Witzland
Jochen Nickel	...	Manfred Rohleder 'Rollo'
Sebastian Rudolph	...	Gege
Dana Vávrová	...	Irina
Martin Benrath	...	General Hentz
Sylvester Groth	...	Otto
Karel Hermánek	...	Hauptmann Musk
Heinz Emigholz	...	Edgar
Ferdinand Schuster	...	Double Edgar
Oliver Broumis	...	HGM
Dieter Okras	...	Hauptmann Haller
Zdenek Vencl	...	Wölk
Mark Kuhn	...	Pflüger
Thorsten Bolloff	...	Feldmann

Storyline

A depiction of the brutal battle of Stalingrad, the Third Reich's 'high water mark', as seen through the eyes of German officer Hans von Witzland and his battalion.

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Plot Keywords:

eastern front | wehrmacht | year 1943 | year 1942 | machine gun | 

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Taglines:

Bis zum letzten Mann... (Till the last man)

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

The "336 Pionier-Bataillon" was a historical unit that also fought in Stalingrad in the "336. Infanterie-Division". The battalion arrived at Stalingrad on the 8th of November 1942. The division was disbanded in 1944.

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Goofs

At the beginning of the movie "Porto Cervo" is indicated as the location where the German army is located. But the city is clearly Cervo, in Liguria. Porto Cervo is in Sardinia.

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Quotes

Fritz Reiser: They say in Germany when you die as a soldier you are honored. That's something, isn't it? Siberia? Not for me. I'm cold enough.

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Connections

Referenced in Vsechnopárty: Episode dated 7 November 2014 (2014)

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Soundtracks

Heimat, Deine Sterne
Lyrics by Erich Knauf and music by Werner Bochmann
Performed by Wilhelm Strienz

User Reviews

I knew a man who was there

I had the honour of knowing a German soldier who fought in the streets of Stalingrad and was one of the few (about 9,000) who got out, on an aircraft. He was the father of one of my boyhood schoolmates, a quiet decent man, his face would light up in a kind of animation whenever the subject was raised, but he wouldn't talk about it to us boys.

He's gone now, poor old fellow. He spent the last years of his life living in a Caravan/humpy on the foot of a mountain in Southern Australia, estranged from his wife, who never forgave him after she discovered he'd fathered a child to another woman during WW2 and was secretly supporting the child financially.

A kinder, more honorable man would be hard to find. I think this film succeeds in depicting the decency of the people on both sides of the conflict as well as the obligatory sadism of the Officer who ordered the firing squad shootings of Russian civilians.

It's pity the Germans still feel no WW2 Film is complete unless traces of the 'evil Nazi' are included. On the other hand it was not lost on myself at least, that the prayer scene, in which the German Army chaplain made a long point of the fact that each Wehrmacht soldier had 'God with us' imprinted under his belt buckle. While the Godless communists enemy did not.

Maybe this is a sly inclusion by the filmaker showing how European peasantry has been propagandised to hate and kill the enemy for centuries.

Stalingrad was the largest battle ever fought in human history. The Germans lost 300,000 frontline combat troops and later, the second World War. This is the best Film ever made on the subject. It is fitting that it was done by Germans.

Bernhard

Details

Country:

Germany

Language:

German Russian

Release Date:

21 January 1993 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Stalingrad

Filming Locations:

Barrandov Studios, Prague, Czech Republic

Box Office

Budget:

DEM20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$10,882, 29 May 1995

Gross USA:

$152,972

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$152,972

Company Credits

Production Co:

B.A. Produktion, Bavaria Film, Perathon Film-und Fernsehproduktions GmbH

Technical Specs

Runtime:

134 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1