“Stalingrad” (1993) “Stalingrad” (1993), directed by German filmmaker Joseph Vilsmaier, follows the tradition of top American Vietnam War films. Similar to Oliver Stone’s “Platoon” or Stanley Kubrick’s “Full Metal Jacket,” “Stalingrad” focuses on a group of relatable everymen caught in a hellish situation beyond their control. The film begins in sunny Italy, introducing us to Lieutenant Hans von Witzland, an aristocratic young man from a Prussian family, and Sergeant Manfred “Rollo” Rohleder, a seasoned Africa Corps veteran. Initially, von Witzland appears to be a Nazi, refusing to award a medal to Rohleder for not buttoning up his collar during inspection, stating, “Heroes aren’t late.”

However, once the setting shifts to the frozen steppes along the Volga, it becomes clear that von Witzland’s strict Prussian militarism is actually in opposition to Nazi ideology. He is a traditional German conservative who vehemently opposes the mistreatment of Russian prisoners and despises the Nazis. Corporal Fritz Reiser, played by French actor Dominique Horowitz, is portrayed as a pragmatic realist determined to survive at any cost. The casting of the Jewish-looking Horowitz as Reiser sends a strong message: not all of von Paulus’s soldiers were Nazis. Like American soldiers in Vietnam, they were ordinary soldiers led by corrupt leaders.