ENEMY AT THE GATES ------------------
The WWII Battle of Stalingrad was the critical political battle of Hitler's annexation of Europe. Nikita Krushchev (Bob Hoskins) was sent in to ensure a face-saving victory for Stalin when the Russians were overpowered in every way. Young propaganda journalist Danilov (Joseph Fiennes, "Shakespeare in Love") sways Krushchev from his intimidation tactics towards building morale through hope pinned on a young heroic soldier, sniper Vassily Zaitsev (Jude Law, "The Talented Mr. Ripley) in writer/director Jean-Jacques Annaud's "Enemy at the Gates."
Annaud begins his based-on-fact tale of the heroic Russian sniper and the German officer sent to stop him (Ed Harris as Major Koenig) with a remembrance of Vassily as a young boy. A dappled horse is tethered in a snowy field as bait to draw wolves. The shepherd's son, being taught how to shoot by his grandfather, watches in horror as the wolf attacks the helpless horse. This metaphor for the sniper battle to follow is stunningly shot, recalling Annaud's nature flick "The Bear."
As adult Vassily travels by train towards the fighting in Stalingrad, he notices a lovely young woman (Rachel Weisz, "The Mummy"), but at their destination, he's herded off the train to boats crossing the Volga to a city under bombardment. This opening sequence recalls that of "Saving Private Ryan," as the Russians are mowed down before most can reach shore - even by their own officers if they attempt to flee the boats. Once ashore, Vassily is greeted with the following orders, repeated over and over as one man receives a gun and the next ammunition - 'The one with the rife shoots. When the one with the rifle gets killed, the one that follows picks up the rifle and shoots.'
Vassily (a holder of bullets) meets Danilov (who's retrieved a gun from a corpse) when both are playing dead amidst scores of dead Russian soldiers in a city square water fountain. They're within shooting range of a high ranking Nazi and his valet when an additional three Germans pull up. Vassily kills all five providing Danilov with a hero around whom he builds a legend. Danilov's newspaper for the Russian military reports on the extraordinary number of German officers Vassily shoots. The Germans take note of this Russian hero and we next see the elegant Major Koenig, the Germans' best sharpshooter, arriving by train smoking gold tipped cigarettes and drinking champagne.
Danilov introduces Vassily to Mrs. Filipov (Eva Mattes, "Woyzeck") who provides an underground shelter and food. Her young son Sascha (Gabriel Thomson) will become a resourceful go-between, trading information for chocolate from Major Koenig. They also meet Tania, that beauty from the train, an educated Jew who wishes to fight the Nazis. Danilov is smitten and insists her education be used at headquarters, but she wants revenge for the murder of her parents and joins the sniper group.
Annaud and cowriter Alain Godard have taken the legend of Vassily Zaitsev, his lover Tania and his German foe Koenig (whom the Russians have documented, but not the Germans) and fashioned an intimate story of a lovers triange (Danilov's character is their concoction and the weak point of the screenplay) and two man battle amidst an epic battle. This first class production scores on almost every front, from Annaud's taut, suspenseful direction to the realistic recreation of Stalingrad under siege (production design by Wolf Kroeger, art direction by Steven Lawrence and Dominic Masters). The match between 'the nobleman from Bavaria who hunts deer and the shepherd's son who poaches wolves' is like a life and death game of chess. Annaud also grittily turns up the heat between Law and Weisz with a uniquely erotic lovemaking scene in the trenches. Unfortunately, James Horner's ("The Perfect Storm") emotionally obvious score plays down to the audience.
The stunning beautiful Jude Law looks the part of the young Russian peasant, although his characterization doesn't go too deep. Ed Harris is exemplary as the German officer with piercing blue eyes. Harris projects a wounded and world weary aristrocrat. Weisz is believable as the fiercely passionate Tania. Not so successful is Fiennes whose Danilov seems a reject from a dinner theater production of "Fiddler on the Roof" while Hoskins is apparently on a mission to protray as many tyrants as possible. The film also features Ron Perlman ("The City of Lost Children") as Koulikov, a student of Koenig's on the Russian side and esteemed German actor Matthias Habich ("Beyond Silence") as General von Paulus.
Many Americans may not be familiar with the events of the Battle of Stalingrad (note that there's an even better film on this battle, told from the German perspective, "Stalingrad," available for rental). Annaud's "Enemy at the Gates" is a rousing historical drama and worthy addition to the recent revival of WWII films.
B
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