gordonl56 ZVEZDA– aka : The Star : 2002The time is summer 1944 and the place is the Eastern Front. The Soviet summer offencive has bulled its way to the border with Poland. The Soviets have stopped to bring up supplies etc for the next series of attacks. In order to have a better idea of the opposing German forces, Soviet headquarters has sent out several recon squads. These squads have failed to return. Headquarters decides they really need the info, so out goes another patrol of recon scouts. The patrol sneaks through the German lines at night under cover of a Soviet artillery barrage. They keep off the roads and cut across country. There main objective is a railway station 30 miles behind the lines. The Soviets works its way towards the station, but are spotted by a German patrol. The chase is now on, the Soviets to gather information, and the German's to kill or capture them. There are several clashes with German troops and the patrol starts to lose members. They do however discover that the Germans are hiding forces in the deep forest for a counter attack. They are also setting up fake tanks etc near the rail station to fool Soviet aerial reconnaissance.They have the info needed, but have lost their radio in a clash with some SS troopers. They pull a raid on a German outpost and steal a German radio. While holed up in a barn, they manage to contact headquarters. They pass on the needed intelligence just before the Germans show with a large force. There is a bloody firefight with the Soviet patrol being wiped out to the last man. This is a pretty decent war film, with some nice looking cinematography and good attention to military detail. The German Tiger tanks are of course not real, but they do make an effort to make them look real. Same with the German half-tracks, they are really post war Czech built items. When the war ended, the Czechs just continued to build the Sd.Kfz 251 for their use. All in all, the film is well worth a look.

Rob Halpin The last couple of months have been great when going shopping as I have re-discovered Russian cinema. Especially war films! The first Russian war film, I ever saw, was "Come & See". Perhaps the most outstanding war film of the last 30 years. However, the Russians have re-emerged with numerous war offerings, from Fortress of War, to The Bomber. The former being absolutely stunning!!! The Star however, was a film certainly made in the same vein. The realism and the style of the film was direct. The stealth, guile and intelligence of Soviet soldiers behind enemy lines was thorough and admirable. By 1944 the Red Army was perhaps the most battle-hardened and skillful soldiers in existence. Night manoeuvres and fighting was by that time a master-class in Red Army operations. All I can say, is that it seems that the Russian film industry is returning to this genre, without the communist baggage. All one can hope, is that the Russian film industry keeps making these types of movies.

alex_kleimenov This movie is about romance that went without a touch, every word of which was sent through the airwaves in form of a code.A newly recruited radio operator girl falls for a young handsome reconnaissance officer. Zvezda is the call-sign of his squad that steals into the night on a mission that may turn deadly.Watching a movie set in the middle of a war, we instinctively try to guess who will survive until the end. In this movie, we hope they all will as we bond with the 6 guys on the squad to the point of our hearts starting to beat with theirs in unison.Communications on a reconnaissance mission is about signs and looks. That's the way a viewer gets to communicate with the characters. The contact takes place on the eye level: the eyes on the screen are larger than life, as well as what we see in them. And what we see there is very often the fear-a feeling very familiar to us, something that makes us bond with the characters even stronger. `Which one would I've been like?' is a question drilling through our heads. The plot is far from schematic and the axiom that `the ours will always win' is subject to a reasonable doubt. Tears are inevitable.A masterpiece music score accompanies the movie shot in beautiful landscapes. The cast is perfect: the actors are not well-known and free from unnecessary stigma. Don't miss a chance to see it.

kuznetsov-1 Just a very good movie about WW II. A true story about a small scout group with radio sign "The Star" (Zvezda) which got a task to find place of German tanks concentration. Two previous groups were lost and nobody knew where and how. The third group is completed by scouts from different fronts. "The Star" goes in both dark of night and obscurity understanding that enemy waits them leaving no chances to return. The movie stays in line with famous US movies like "Private Ryane" and "Thin Red Line". Very good battle scenes and music.