Cert 15
114 mins
BBFC advice: Contains strong bloody war violence
I am confused.
A few months back a Polish film called 1939 Heroes of Westerplatte was shown at Cineworld for a week.
I missed it but, undaunted, I tracked down a DVD copy when it was released recently.
At least I thought I had. You see, the video is called 1939 Battle Of Westerplatte.
Ok, connoisseurs will known that very occasionally a film will change its name between the cinema and home release (eg Lidice becomes The Fall Of The Innocent).
But the confusion lay in the fact that The Battle Of Westerplatte is directed by Pavel Chochlew and yet, on Cineworld's listings, The Heroes Of Westerplatte was dirceted by Stanislav Ruzhevich,
So are they not the same film? Well, they were both released in 2013, have exactly the same cast and the clincher is that they have the same trailer.
I am still bamboozled about the director and the sudden change in name but I am now convinced they are one and the same.
Westerplatte, I have now discovered, is a coastline near the port of Gdansk which was more recently famous for Lech Walesa and the birth of Solidarity.
Clearly, the Poles in that neck of the woods are a hardy bunch because a couple of hundred of them tried for days to prevent the German invasion in 1939.
The battalion was instructed to hold out for 12 hours but literally stuck to its guns for several days despite a fierce onslaught on the ground and from the air and sea.
At the heart of this movie is not only their bravery but also the in-camp strife.
The latter manifests itself in raging arguments between the senior officers and fear among the ranks.
It seems as this has gone down badly in Poland where the men in the garrison have been long hailed as national heroes.
Indeed, their leader, Henryk Sucharski was highly decorated as a result.
Here, played by Michal Zebrowski, he is portrayed as having a nervous breakdown and his command is taken away.
Regardless of his role, there can be little doubt that in their situation the men would have been as fearful as the film represents (who wouldn't have been?).
It also highlights their incredible bravery amid horrendous circumstances (the battle scenes are reminiscent of Saving Private Ryan in their ferocity and realism).
Indeed, for a good hour the movie had me gripped. But sadly, as is the fact with war, it becomes repetitive. The arguments continue as the shelling carries on and the shock value becomes diluted.
The Poles make fine war films (see Katyn and In Darkness). 1939 Battle For Westerplatte is good but not as good.
Laughs: none
Jumps: none
Vomit: more foam than vomit
Nudity: none
Overall rating: 7/10