Taking place in the fall of 1942, Enemy At The Gates refers to
the Nazi siege of Stalingrad, a city in the Soviet Union that bore the brunt of
some of the most vicious fighting in the entire Second World War. Jude Law stars
as Vassili, a Russian farm boy who manages to survive the slaughter of the daily
combat and become renowned throughout his embittered country for his remarkable
skills as a sniper. His exploits serve to boost the morale of a people for whom
hope has seemingly all but abandoned. Joseph Fiennes stars as Danilov, the
political officer in the Red Army whose reporting of Vassili's exploits elevates
the young solider to heroic status. Danilov's own career also rises along with
that of Vassili's.
This winning streak continues for both men until they meet Tania (Rachel Weisz),
a strong-willed young woman who serves in the local militia. As both Danilov and
Vassili vie for Tania's affections, their tight camaraderie threatens to be torn
asunder. And it couldn't happen at a worst time, since the Germans--after losing
much of their officer corps to Vassili's sniper rifle--decide to deal with him
personally. They send for Major Konig (superbly played with quiet intensity by
Ed Harris), an expert marksman who taught sniper tactics at one of Germany's
best military schools, to hunt down and kill Vassili.
Director Jean-Jacques Annard, who gave us The Name Of The Rose, as well as Quest
For Fire, does a marvelous job not only capturing the day to day struggle for
survival during the Stalingrad siege, but he also superbly plays out the
intricate and deadly game of cat and mouse between Vassili and Konig, who fight
their own private war against the backdrop of one of the biggest campaigns of
the Second World War (in what is probably one of the lesser known theaters of
the war, at least to Western viewers). The major battle scenes are unflinchingly
realistic, as is the gloomy life of a typical Russian solider on the front,
whose only options were to risk his or her (women soldiers fought side by side
with the men in the Red Army) life in suicidal assaults against heavily
fortified German positions, or be shot like a dog by their own officers.
Law and Fiennes are good, as is Weisz, who gets down and dirty in some of the
combat scenes. Actor Ron Pearlman, a staple in Annard's films since Quest For
Fire, is great as a fellow Red Army Soldier who becomes Vassili's comrade in
arms. Bob Hoskins is a standout as Kruchev, the bloodthirsty military leader of
Stalingrad who will win at any cost. The special features on the DVD include two
behind the scenes documentaries: "Through The Crosshairs" and "Inside Enemy At
The Gates." There's also a collection of deleted scenes, and the theatrical
trailer. There is no audio commentary. What's really fascinating about Enemy At
The Gates is that it is based on a true story--not just the war itself, but the
sniper battle between the Russian and German marksmen actually happened. This
film effectively manages to bring a dark turning point in history to life
through a gripping story.
--SF
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