“Enemy at the Gates” is this year’s first attempt to become the next “Saving
Private Ryan” (the much advertised “Pearl Harbor” set to open in a couple of
months will be the second), but let me just tell you that “Enemy” is far from being as memorable as “Ryan”.
The film focuses on the crucial World War II battle in Stalingrad. The
Germans have reached the heart of the Russian Empire and have utterly
destroyed it. The Soviet army sends in more soldiers in a desperate attempt to recapture the city, and here we are introduced to Vassili Zaitsev (played
by Jude Law). He is a courageous young man who skillfully snipes out
several high ranking German officers without being detected.
This heroic
deed is witnessed by Danilov (Joseph Fiennes), a Russian political officer
who propagates the story to boost the morale of the Russians. Everyday, the
people are informed on how many German officers Vassili has killed, causing
him to be propelled to legendary status. It doesn’t take the Germans long
before they realize his threat, so they send their best sniper Major Konig
(Ed Harris) to get rid of the thorn. This leads to the duel
between the two sharp shooters, with the hunter now being the
hunted.
I really liked the cinematography in “Enemy”, and the battle scenes are
really great. It was also refreshing to see a WWII film that did not
incorporate American intervention. I have heard of the Battle of
Stalingrad, but I never really knew anything about it besides that it
happened in Stalingrad. The best scenes in the movie though were the suspenseful sniper showdowns between Vassili and Konig.
However, aside from
these points, “Enemy” is not a real engaging movie. There is a love story
that wasn’t even remotely interesting, several scenes with overly dramatic musical scores and characters that I didn’t really care for.
The highlight of the movie though was Jude Law. He does an excellent job as
Vassili, and “Enemy” showcases his acting abilities. He had a great
supporting role in “The Talented Mr. Ripley”, but I think it is time for him
to shine on his own with a movie that does him justice. However, “Enemy” is
not the movie to do that.
