Heavily flawed, but quite entertaining...

Rating: 7/10 (24 June 2007)

ENEMY AT THE GATES
*** 1/2 stars out of 5 (7/10).
"Enemy at the Gates" is entertaining and well made. Its heart is in the right place, and the director isn't an amateur. Nonetheless, this war movie is anything but perfect.
Vassili Zaitsev (JUDE LAW) and Political Officer Danilov (JOSEPH FIENNES) are two Russians behind Nazi German lines during World War II. Using the only rifle available, Zaitsev snipes 4 or 5 Nazis, saving the life of himself and Danilov. The two quickly become great friends. One day, the Fiennes character suggests to the Russian leader Kruschev (BOB HOSKINS) that the Russian people need a hero to boost morale during the battle of Stalingrad. Using his writing skills, Zaitsev quickly becomes the Russian hero; being the ultimate sniper and the ultimate soldier. The Germans find out about it and send their own killing machine; Major Konig played by ED HARRIS. They must eliminate this threat. That's what this movie is about; a duel between two snipers at Stalingrad.
I am giving this movie a positive rating, but I'm gonna be doing a lot of complaining. There is a beautiful female soldier named Tania Chernova (RACHEL WEISZ) who becomes Vassili's lover. Danilov also likes this girl, and becomes increasingly jealous. When we first find out that the Jude Law character and Tania are "in love", we originally had no idea. In fact, a child tells Major Konig that the two will probably get married, and that's when we first find out. As I was watching, I wondered "When the hell did all this happen?" The two characters had barely talked or glanced at each other, and now we're under the assumption they're in love. I think the director himself noticed this loophole. Zaitsev and Chernova get down and dirty on the ground a few minutes later. That's not the way to correct a mistake. We're supposed to understand that they are in love because they have sex; it's all clear now. Of course, I'm being sarcastic, but it was one of the film's biggest flaws; the potential love triangle. It is material that belongs in soaps, and not on the big screen. I'm not saying these kind of relationships aren't possible in the movies, but how they are executed determines whether or not they should be on the the silver screen. It was both over-the-top and unneeded. I think this film is a true story, so the triangle may or may not have happened. In the film, it was poorly executed. That's all I'm trying to say.
Again, this film can be very entertaining, and it has more than enough heart. At times, I felt like I was playing "Medal of Honor", but most of the time war is not seen as fun; which is another positive. All of the performances were A-grade, especially from the great Ed Harris.
Even though I spent most of this review complaining, you should know that it's worth a see. It was skillfully made, and it keeps your attention. "Enemy at the Gates" is inspirational, well- acted entertainment...why else see a movie?