Chronicle of the unheralded and unsuccessful invasion of the Soviet Union by the Italian army during World War II.Chronicle of the unheralded and unsuccessful invasion of the Soviet Union by the Italian army during World War II.Chronicle of the unheralded and unsuccessful invasion of the Soviet Union by the Italian army during World War II.
- Awards
- 1 win & 1 nomination
Grigory Mikhaylov
- Russian Partisan
- (as Grigorij Mikhailov)
Ivan Paramonov
- German Deserter
- (as I. Paramonov)
Sergei Lukyanov
- Partisan Commander
- (as S. Lukyanov)
Ervin Knausmyuller
- German General
- (as E. Knausmyuller)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe Italian version of the film is dedicated to all those who fought on the Eastern Front in the last war.
- GoofsThe Russian tanks featured in the film are T-34/85's, which were not produced until early 1944, a full a year after the events in this film took place.
- Alternate versionsThe U.S. version omits several scenes, such as the first half of the battle on the Don which has the Italian soldiers returning the Russian artillery fire and putting up a spirited resistance for a few minutes. Instead, the U.S. version opens the battle with the Italians already in headlong retreat.
- ConnectionsEdited from The Victors and the Vanquished (1949)
- SoundtracksItaliano Karascio
Written by Franco Migliacci (as F. Migliacci) and Armando Trovajoli (as A. Trovaioli)
Featured review
A surprisingly beautiful film
I saw this many, many years ago under the title "Attack and Retreat". It is about the Italian participation in World War II on the Eastern Front - where Mussolini sent soldiers to die for his own grandiose vision of himself as an equal partner in German conquest.
I'm not able to recall many details, but there are a number of remarkable scenes that stand out in my memory. One was of a young soldier and a Russian girl in a field of high wheat. Quiet bullets whisper through the windblown stalks in deadly counterpoint to the young love of the boy and girl. In another scene Peter Falk, looking very small and lonely in a bleak and forbidding landscape of snow and ice, struggles to get to the rear while artillery rockets streak through the sky behind him. In still another scene, an Italian guard plays the Internationale on his harmonica to show some human solidarity to a group of Russian civilian prisoners. A mocking German guard demands that the prisoners sing, and a singer stands up to sing.
Shot in very striking black and white, it was an effective antiwar and anti-fascist film with powerful visuals and a strong message of humanity.
I liked it very much and wish it were shown more often.
I'm not able to recall many details, but there are a number of remarkable scenes that stand out in my memory. One was of a young soldier and a Russian girl in a field of high wheat. Quiet bullets whisper through the windblown stalks in deadly counterpoint to the young love of the boy and girl. In another scene Peter Falk, looking very small and lonely in a bleak and forbidding landscape of snow and ice, struggles to get to the rear while artillery rockets streak through the sky behind him. In still another scene, an Italian guard plays the Internationale on his harmonica to show some human solidarity to a group of Russian civilian prisoners. A mocking German guard demands that the prisoners sing, and a singer stands up to sing.
Shot in very striking black and white, it was an effective antiwar and anti-fascist film with powerful visuals and a strong message of humanity.
I liked it very much and wish it were shown more often.
helpful•120
- ameyer2
- Dec 20, 2005
Details
- Runtime2 hours 17 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content