The greatest WWII movie ever made.

Rating: 8/10 (19 August 2005)

Cross of Iron is simply the greatest WWII film ever made. Sam Peckinpah's direction is absolutely brilliant. The battle scenes in the film are some of the most realistic battle scenes I have ever seen. The battles are so realistic, that you almost feel as if you are a part of them. In some scenes your staring right down the barrel of an MG-42 machine gun as it fires. When soldiers are shot or bayoneted, it almost seems as if you yourself are being shot or stabbed. The film is violent, gritty, and extremely powerful. 'Cross of Iron' is much more intense than any Hollywood WWII movie, especially those glorious almost pro-war films of the time. The editing is superb, and Peckinpah's cross cutting helps the audience see the horrors and confusion of war. I must also mention that the film contains some of the best uses of slow-motion in cinematic history.
It also helps that the costumes and weaponry are for the most part accurate for the period. Even if the T-34/85's did not come until after 1943 (when the film takes place), it is still great to see actual tanks on the battlefield. No CGI we have today can be as effective as the real thing.
Unlike most English language WWII films, Cross of Iron is shown from the German perspective. A perspective in which I find quite interesting. I'm usually quite bored with the number of siminlarly plotted WWII films focusing on the U.S. Army. In Cross of Iron there are no Americans, just Germans and Soviets. I'm glad many German actors were cast as they add realism to the film and they do not seem dubbed either. Even though the English dialogue does not hurt the film, I would really like to see the German version.
The film does an excellent job of accurately depicting each side. It is not bias like almost all of the Hollywood WWII movies. Each side suffers a great amount in the film. I have seen few WWII movies where both sides are treated so equally. Instead of the enemy soldiers being portrayed as villains, it is the hard line Nazis inside the German Wehrmacht that are vilified (I don't consider Stransky a villain like he is in the book). Most German soldiers were no different from their American counterparts, as they did not fight for a political reason, but rather simply to save their own skin.
The question one may ask is how does 'Cross of Iron' compare to 'Saving Private Ryan'? Well, it doesn't. This masterpiece is far superior. No WWII film even comes close.