The opening chapter of the film shows a happy and happy life. The military band is playing cheerful dance music, young lovers are dancing and chasing happily, the captain's family is taking a group photo, the soldiers are leisurely walking their dogs and horses and playing cards. There will be a romantic show at night. love movie. This is the only peaceful and quiet scene in the film, and it also explains the general terrain and location of the fortress. But there is also unease and tension in the serenity, as the investigative dialogue between Lieutenant Weinstein and Major Peter amply illustrates. You must know that Germany and the Soviet Union were allies at that time, which was why the fortress was so peaceful on the border. Obviously, Major Peter was one of the cool-headed people in the army, and he said that one of the reasons for the confusion was that the officer They were placed separately from the soldiers, and there was no way to effectively command them in the event of a war. Later, the mixed formation of combat troops fully demonstrated this confusion. In addition, June 22 was the weekend, and many Soviet officers returned to Minsk and other big cities on vacation. This was also the reason for the lack of senior officers in the later battles. Commissar Fuming originally wanted to take vacations, but he did not buy them later. Limited train tickets. There is another reason not mentioned in the movie, that is, the fortress was damaged during the First World War, but the Soviet Union used prisoners to renovate the fortress, which led to the very slow progress of the project, and many heavy weapons were not in place in time. On the other side of the Bug River, the German army was ready to attack the Soviet Union across the board, including seizing air supremacy in the war, the armored troops quickly crossing the fortress to participate in the Battle of Minsk, and full artillery preparations. The performance of the Soviet intelligence service in World War II is really not to be complimented on.
Afterwards, the director used a lot of footage to show the cruelty of the war. Akimov and Anya, who were in love with each other, were fishing by the river. The transport driver in the fortress had just confessed to the girl in the retail store. Most people were still immersed in their early morning dreams. The German war broke out. Planes flew across the sky to drop bombs, and artillery shells roared past and dropped causing clusters of explosions. The beautiful city was blown up in an instant, the panicked crowds were turned into bloody corpses in the bombs, the horses blew up the camp and ran around, the soldiers untied their cables and shot the badly injured horses, but in the end their own bodies were also killed by the horses. Children dragged around, soldiers and their families blindly rushed to the city gate leading to the outside of the fortress, but they encountered intensive machine gun fire from the Germans, and the corpses piled up at the gate, allowing the tanks to run over them. I think anyone who clamors for easy war should read history and watch more war movies, and any human should try to avoid tragedies.
In the second stage of the film, the soldiers began to resist stubbornly under the organization of some officers. What impressed me was that in the barracks, Lieutenant Weinstein tactfully exposed the German spy who had infiltrated the Soviet army, and pierced his order to withdraw the troops; at the Holm Gate of the fortress, the political commissar Fuming blocked the German army at the bridge in time, and he was brave. Rescue the wounded and doctors who were used as human shields by the Germans; Major Peter rushed to the barracks in time, stopped the soldiers who fled in panic, and let them take up arms to face the attack of German tanks and infantry. Akimov's brother used it on the flank. The cannon blew up the tank and died, but the team led by the major repelled the enemy's attack; Anya's father let the family hide in the basement, and then led the team to defend the barracks. The Soviet army stopped the German attack, but from the description of the parachuting pilots and the confessions of the German soldiers on their backs, it shows that the German army is interspersed in depth, and the fall of the fortress is only a matter of time, which is also doomed to the film. A failed ending, the key lies in How to face failure.
Because the fortress did not have heavy firepower to stop the advance of the German tank troops, and the infantry regiment suffered heavy losses in the attack, the German army adjusted its campaign strategy and did not use infantry to attack, but bombed with 2-ton bombs and artillery, and adopted siege tactics at the same time. , allowing the Soviet army to consume combat power without food and water; although the scattered Soviet forces made contact and broke through, but suffered heavy losses due to the vitality of the German army that had been prepared, they could only retreat to the fortress at last, and the hope of breaking through was shattered. Only fight to the death. After the German army gave an ultimatum, the Soviet army asked their families and children to surrender to the Germans. I think this is a very big improvement in the Russian theme film, that is, the film does not just shout slogans and doctrines, but reflects human nature. In the final battle, after the artillery bombs turned the fortress into ruins, the Germans used flamethrower bombs one by one to destroy the remaining resisting soldiers, and finally captured a few Soviet troops.
The biggest improvement of this film, which is also something similar Chinese films should learn from, is to abandon the tone of the false and empty, and start shooting based on historical facts and human nature. The end of history is indeed the failure of the Soviet Army, but this has not weakened or lowered the position of the Soviet Red Army in history. On the contrary, its persistence and fighting in the face of inevitable failure can reflect the precious dedication and patriotism. The image of the character is no longer the leader who is strategizing and the individual who is not light-faced, but better highlights the personality of the character. The commanders who fought in the three places and the battle have outstanding character display; that battle to the last moment, The lieutenant who also danced happily to the Russian dance; the Fuming who was finally captured and admitted that I was a political commissar of the Jewish Communist Party; the officer who was unwilling to be captured after running out of ammunition and food, and shot his wife and then committed suicide; the driver who was initially frightened by the cruelty of the war, even abandoned The girlfriend who was abused by the German army gripped the dirt in the crater with remorse, and finally chose to die with the German officer with a smile and died beside her girlfriend. Facing the surrendering comrades and families, the lieutenant held down the machine gun that was going to shoot them. When the film no longer deceives the audience with a hypocritical purpose, but depicts that period of history truthfully and carefully depicts each character in it, their initial panic and shock, they were timid and gave up remorse, but many people finally chose to be strong to fight and love their country. I think that's the most important element of why this film is so successful. We have a lot of good war themes to shoot, but the question is what method and concept you choose to show.
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