History not mystery

Rating: 5/10 (16 October 2009)

This movie tells us how the Battle of Stalingrad ends, but gives little indication as to why. In a real sense, the battle's outcome was determined even before it began. When Russia was first invaded, the Russians moved many of their strategic factories by railroad into far Easter Russia, out of danger from German aircraft. The factories were reassembled and began 24/7 production of war materials. Workers included men women and children, some very young, who labored up to two, or more, shifts a day. The Soviets amassed millions of first line troops troops as far away as Siberia, training and waiting for a counter offensive. Huge numbers of new tanks (notably the T-34) and airplanes were built and held in reserve. It would be only a matter of time until German armies crumbled before the Soviet might sweeping towards the Fatherland. In fact, Stalin repeatedly asked both Roosevelt and Churchill to open an second front so his armies could begin. He had to wait for over a year. The Russians had more and better food at Stalingrad than their enemy, and legend has it that each Russian soldier had two hot meals a day, with meat that was supplied by herds of sheep and cattle which followed the armies westward. Many of the troops (both men and women)were armed with automatic weapons. In Stalingrad, the Russians sharpened their shovels as weapons for hand-to-hand combat. The Germans, on the other hand, were poorly supplied over a long 2000 kilometer supply line, a line which was constantly interdicted at various points. Bolt-action rifles and fewer automatic weapons were the order of the day. Light-weight uniforms were miserable in the Russian winter. Food was scarce and miserable. The list goes on. Suffice it to say, the Germans violated too many rules of modern warfare.The major tragedy of Stalingrad, as indicated in this film, is that the German soldier had no knowledge of the Soviets's power, and little appreciation of their resolve. The major virtue of this movie is that the horror and suffering is well-illustrated. Even then the misery is understated. I recommend this film highly as a beginning for further study. In a real way, the history of the Battle of Stalingrad exceeds the drama of the movie.