| Review:
|
Enemy at the Gates is directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud.
The film stars Jude Law, Bob Hoskins, Ed Harris, and Joseph
Fiennes. James Horner composed the musical score.***
Enemy at the Gates is based on a true story of two dueling
snipers in the Second World War. As the Germans plow through
Russia, hopelessly outnumbered by the Nazi regime, it is
decided that the Russians need a hero they can look up to
and be inspired by – and that hero comes in the form of
a Russian expert sniper. Aware of this new threat, though,
the Germans send their own finest snipers in an effort to
combat the Russian. ***
Enemy at the Gates is an excellent film. War films
of recent years tend to be on the hit-and-miss side, but
this one is an exception. With an ensemble cast that includes
both great actors and up-and-coming young stars, there isn’t
a weak performance in the lot. There are plenty of classic
moments in the movie, and despite a length of over two hours,
the movie will keep you engrossed as it moves along. There
isn’t a boring moment in the movie – something is always
going on. ***
Ultimately, despite my opinion of War movies going
down in recent years, Enemy at the Gates stands strong as
an exception to the rule – a war movie that does almost
everything right. The movie isn’t perfect, but it succeeds
in more areas than it falls flat. As a whole, it isn’t hard
to recommend Enemy at the Gates. There are liberties taken
with historical facts here and there, but it certainly doesn’t
detract from enjoyment of the film. ---
Image and Sound: This is a film that was always meant
to have a drab color pallet due to the nature of the film,
and its being set in the past. Color-wise, it isn’t going
to jump out at the viewer, except for in those inevitable
moments of blood splatter. That said, this transfer looks
pretty damn good. Fine object detail is strong throughout,
and there aren’t any major anomalies to speak of that detract
from the viewing experience. The lossless audio track is
good, though it never really makes great use of the full-blown
surround sound we’ve come to expect from Blu-Ray. All in
all though, it looks and sounds pretty good. ---
|
| Special
Features: |
All of the featurettes from the DVD are ported over,
with nothing exclusive for the Blu-Ray version. These include
some typical behind-the-scenes/cast-and-crew stuff, as well
as a few deleted scenes. I was hoping for some bonus features
exclusive to the HD format, but oh well, at least it’s not
a bare bones disc. ---
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|
Final Words:
|
All in all, Enemy at the Gates
is a success. This film stands strong, with no dull moments.
In a day and age where most of the new War movies coming out
are sappy and overly sentimental, Enemy at the Gates stands
on a plane all its own. With a great cast, writing, direction,
and plenty of other good factors going for it, Enemy at the
Gates comes highly recommended. |
