“Man will always be a man. There is no new man. We tried so hard to create a society that was equal, where there’d be nothing to envy your neighbor. But there’s always something to envy. A smile, a friendship, something you don’t have and want to appropriate. In this world, even a Soviet one, there will always be rich and poor. Rich in gifts, poor in gifts. Rich in love, poor in love.”
For many, Saving Private Ryan has been the measure of the perfect war film in the modern era. Without question the Steven Spielberg film is a milestone in depicting battle on the screen. But I’m going to make the possibly unpopular statement that Enemy At The Gates is a better film, and the standard by which war films should now be measured. The movie is at least almost as good technically as Private Ryan. There are battle scenes that offer the same caliber of shocking reality. And even if this movie falls a little short of the technical marvel that Private Ryan was, this movie captures the human element of war time in a way I hadn’t seen before or since. Certainly all of the necessary hallmarks of the war picture formula are intact. There are plenty of battle scenes and enough ultra realistic bloodletting to satisfy the most insatiable aficionado. But Enemy At The Gates refuses to rely on such brutality to make its point. Instead the hazards of war are merely the atmosphere that allows an excellent cast, under brilliant direction, to bring to life an inspired script. Now Alliance Entertainment and Paramount are bringing you a special edition Steelbook UHD Blu-ray in 4K. You’re going to have an opportunity to see this thing like you’ve never seen it before.
“Autumn, 1942. Europe lies crushed beneath the Nazi jackboot. The German Third Reich is at the height of its power. Hitler’s armies are charging through the heart of the Soviet Union towards the oil fields of Asia. One last obstacle remains, a city on the Volga, where the fate of the world is being decided – Stalingrad.”
It’s the heart of World War II. Hitler and his Third Reich are marching across Europe, spreading their shadow of fascism and tyranny wherever they go. They have now begun their assault on the young Soviet Union. For the Soviets, troops are weary and supplies are scarce. For the beleaguered soldiers of the Red Army, it is a matter of being shot by the enemy or by your own field commanders should you even think about a retreat. Their mission now is to defend the city of Stalingrad, which bears the name of “The Boss” and stands as a symbol of nationalism to the infant nation. But things are not going well at all. Only every other soldier is armed. The unarmed soldier is admonished to wait until the one holding the rifle is killed to take up arms himself. For these Russian men it is not a matter of if they are killed, but merely when. After a heavy day of fighting, a political officer, Danilov (Fiennes) finds himself pinned down with another young soldier, Vassili (Law). Vassili manages to take out the officers who stand in their way of escape. Danilov decides that Vassili could well be the hero that the Soviet soldiers need. He realizes that fear is not as good a motivator as inspiration. Before long he has written news articles that chronicle the exploits of Vassili as he takes his positions in the city and racks up an impressive score of German officers. Unfortunately, it is not only the Soviet soldiers who hear of these adventures. Vassili comes to the attention of the German brass who bring in their own sharpshooter, the decorated officer, Major Konig (Harris). The two play a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse in the ruins of Stalingrad. Vassili must also contend with his feelings for an intelligence officer, a young woman named Tania (Weisz). The three become engaged in a love triangle of sorts, causing Danilov to attempt to take down the hero he created. He also begins to doubt the figure he has become to the Soviet people. Konig and Vassili will eventually face each other, and only one of them can survive.
“On this day, September 20th 1942, a young shepherd boy from the Urals arrived in the city of Stalingrad on the banks of the Volga. His name is Vassili Zaitzev. Like thousands before him, he came to answer comrade Stalin’s call. Armed only with a rifle, he quickly made the fascist invader realize that from now on he would be punished for every step he took in the motherland, that from here on the only way was back.”
There is little in the way of flaws to mar this movie. The cast is as strong as it gets. Jude Law and Ed Harris develop a chemistry together without ever sharing the screen. They face off from distances of hundreds of yards, but they begin to know each other as if they were sharing the same barracks. You can feel the mutual respect, fear, and hatred the two have for each other. Ed Harris can create intense drama merely by remaining coldly still for minutes at a time. While the love triangle was distracting and totally unnecessary, I found Rachel Weisz to be her usual strong character. I loved the character, but not the story arc. Joseph Fiennes has perhaps the most underappreciated role in the entire movie. He goes through an entire range of emotions that are very real at any given moment. Ron Perlman has an underused role as one of Vassili’s point men for a time. It doesn’t hurt these actors’ performances any that the sets and locations are simply spectacular. The wintry environments are absolutely convincing. What’s even better is to find that it not only holds up well with this high-definition release, but it just gets better. The only other flaw the film contains is a pat and artificially happy ending. I’d be happy to see the film end at the point where one or the other falls.
Video
Enemy At The Gates is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.39:1. The ultra-high-definition 2160p image is arrived at by an HEVC codec with an average bitrate of 55 mbps. The ultra-high-definition image presentation is a huge leap from the previous Blu-ray release. There’s a lot of darkness and dreary atmosphere in the film, and the Dolby Vision manages to cut though the grit which is necessary for the experience yet still deliver detail. Textures stand out here, from the uniforms of both sides to the debris-covered landscape of the battlefield. Black levels are sharp and offer above average shadow definition. Colors are dreary by intention, but there are flashes of bright colors in the fiery explosions. The color is appropriately cold with a decidedly blue tinge, while interiors often switch to a warmer color with plenty of earth tones. Flesh tones are pale as should be expected, but facial details are superior with plenty of facial hair and wounds.
Audio
The audio presentation is average. You pretty much get the same Dolby Digital True HD 5.1 track you got with the Blu-ray, and it was somewhat of a disappointment to me. Subs don’t really come alive with all of the explosions, but the dialog cuts and the surrounds provide a little bit of the experience.
Special Features
There are no extras on the UHD disc, and the Blu-ray HD version has the same extras as both the previous Blu-ray and DVD releases.
Final Thoughts:
This was a film I’ve been anticipating in ultra high definition. I wasn’t disappointed, and you won’t be either. If you have a good and large enough monitor, you’ll be whisked away from your armchair and deposited right in the middle of the action. How about that? A war film that manages to capture the essential human element in intimate detail, tell a compelling story, and not once compromise on the action. The formula is actually pretty simple. “The one with the rifle shoots.”
