The main drawbacks of this film are that it lacks coherence (there is a feel like the films has been haphazardly put together), the war effects are badly done, and the German soldiers are the same boring soldiers you see in just about any WWII film-- i.e., they are just plain evil. No doubt there was much inane and brutal violence from the Germans, but one would be led to believe in this film that the Russian soldiers and the children of the international proletariat are saints to the trigger happy Germans. The problem with the action sequences is that the editing comes across as awkward.
On the other hand the acting is well played and the story is fairly interesting. They managed to get some impressive scenes in Belarus at a monastery. It's worth a watch if you are interested in WWII, Russia, or China.
On the other hand the acting is well played and the story is fairly interesting. They managed to get some impressive scenes in Belarus at a monastery. It's worth a watch if you are interested in WWII, Russia, or China.