A BATTLE BETWEEN TWO NATIONS BECAME A CONFLICT BETWEEN TWO MEN.
Clever WWII marksman Vassili Zaitsev (Jude Law) becomes a living legend all over the USSR, but eventually has to face Nazi Germany’s best man. This multi-country endeavor avoids becoming an elephantine mess; versatile director Jean-Jacques Annaud expertly recreates a Stalingrad bombed to pieces, and brings a great deal of tension to some scenes, a cat-and-mouse game between snipers. But watching people sneak up on each other does become somewhat tedious. Ed Harris lends his German sharpshooter an aura of danger and sophistication.
2001-Germany-Britain-Ireland-U.S. 131 min. Color. Widescreen. Directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud. Screenplay: Jean-Jacques Annaud, Alain Godard. Music: James Horner. Cast: Joseph Fiennes (Danilov), Jude Law (Vassili Zaitsev), Rachel Weisz (Tanja Chernova), Ed Harris (König), Bob Hoskins, Ron Perlman.
Trivia: Co-produced by Annaud.
