When The North Star was made in 1943, the outcome of World War II was far from certain. Allied victories had been won at Midway, El Alamein and Stalingrad. But Japan still controlled its Asia-Pacific conquests, and Germany occupied land and enslaved people from the steppes to the Pyrenees.
Not to discount British activities in North Africa and on the Atlantic, our main ally in the land war against the Germans was the Soviet Union. This movie, hokey as it appears today, fits the mold of a number of other morale-boosting propaganda-dramas made on both sides of the Atlantic. None hold up to modern-day criticism, nor should they have to.
I find more to criticise in many of the reviews which ignore the times and circumstances under which The North Star was made. One can despise Stalin and still respect what 'his' armies accomplished and honor the unimaginable sacrifices 'his' people made during "The Great Patriotic War."
Not to discount British activities in North Africa and on the Atlantic, our main ally in the land war against the Germans was the Soviet Union. This movie, hokey as it appears today, fits the mold of a number of other morale-boosting propaganda-dramas made on both sides of the Atlantic. None hold up to modern-day criticism, nor should they have to.
I find more to criticise in many of the reviews which ignore the times and circumstances under which The North Star was made. One can despise Stalin and still respect what 'his' armies accomplished and honor the unimaginable sacrifices 'his' people made during "The Great Patriotic War."