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A_Ratliff [ 8.0 ]
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"Enemy at the Gates" is a rarity--a movie that dares to take a new spin on a major war. World War II is represented differently in this film. The focus of the movie is not on the war, but on two warring snipers who happen to be caught up in the war. "Enemy at the Gates" is, at its heart, a suspense movie, not one of the paint-by-numbers war movies that seem to be cropping up everywhere nowadays. Not to worry, guys--there's plenty of violence to fulfill your need to see some blood. People looking to be entertained and true cinemaphiles alike will get a kick out of "Enemy at the Gates". It gets a few points docked for being slow in parts, but for the most part, it's absolutely worth checking out.
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chapter11 [ 8.5 ]
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A truly cinematic experience, "Enemy at the Gates" troubles itself not with the routine trappings of run-of-the-mill war films, but rather presents itself, not as a war film, but as a suspense movie set during wartime. This proves infinitely more interesting as the suspense increases and the cat-and-mouse game played out by Ed Harris and Jude Law intensifies. Hollow, by-the-book war films are more of a desecration than this exciting, surprisingly superlative thriller.
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mike [ 9.0 ]
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A love story during ww2. Extremely graphic in its depiction of war and the suffering endured by the russians during the battle for stalingrad. I don't think I'll ever be able to see bob hoskins as anyone other than his character from roger rabbit, but otherwise a superb job of character development and storytelling. Definately not for those with weak stomachs. Think of the beginning of Saving Private Ryan.
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Mohawk [ 9.0 ]
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There have been many WW2 movies in recent years...but most have been all hype with very little substance (Saving Private Ryan being the most notable one.)
Enemy at the Gates comes very close to becoming a true cinematic classic. The sheer depth of characterisation is rare in modern movies these days. The staging of Stalingrad is convincing and has none of the false computerisation seen in another over-hyped movie Gladiator.
The cast although not perfect work together well. Ed Harris being by far ahead of the class.
The Eastern Front tends to be a forgotten war by western cinema...Enemy of the Gates does alot to rectify this.
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jeff_v [ 6.5 ]
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Fairly routine war film with little insight -- Enemy at the Gates relies instead on suspense (the sniper battles are well-orchestrated) and sex (lovely 'silent' sex scene between Jude Law and Rachel Weisz) to entertain. I wish they'd made more out of its 2.5 hour running time.
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Stitch [ 9.0 ]
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This could be considered Saving Private Ryan Lite, but that would be a definite over-simplification. This true story is riveting and and harsh but doesn't quite go to that place of visual horror that Saving Private Ryan did. All the leads did a great job. Some slight problems with accent continuity, not within an actor but between all the actors. Ed Harris used his American accent and Joseph Fiennes, Jude Law, Rachel Weisz and Bob Hoskins all used their British accents. There were a few random Russian accents thrown in for good measure as well. I really don't mind watching a movie where the accents are supposed to be French or Russian but everyone uses a British accent or high-brow American, but at least be consistant. Inconsistancy brings attention to the fact that they aren't using the right accent. There were also some poor choices in story editing, in transitions we didn't see that were unfortunate. But other than that I was moved and engrossed for much of the movie. There's also a surprisingly sweet and sexy love scene in the middle of all the carnage. It's definitely worth catching in the theater.
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JD [ 9.0 ]
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Having seen Saving Private Ryan and loved it, I figured it would be impossible to duplicate that incredible war film. Well, Enemy at the Gates comes very close to doing just that. The film looks at the Russian perspective of WWII and this is an excellent film from beginning to end. The suspense is terrific and the cat and mouse game between Ed Harris and Jude Law is great. The action is riveting and intense throughout. I really can't say enough about this movie. I was so pleasantly surprised and you will be too.
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Emmitt [ 8.5 ]
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A definite hit movie. This surprised me, I expected it to be good, just not this good. A truly great story to go along with an excellent peformance by Ed Harris, one of his best for sure.
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Love_Spoon [ 8.0 ]
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I found it interesting that the reviews for Enemy at the Gates were lukewarm. I admit that it wasn't a perfect movie, but it honestly was the best movie that I had seen for quite a while at the time. It tells the story of a young Russian sniper (Jude Law) during World War Two, and the cat-and-mouse match that he has with a high-ranking German officer (Ed Harris). In the meantime, a young politician (Joseph Fiennes) becomes aware of Law as a potential military celebrity and inspiration, and publicizes his daring conquest. Fiennes and Law both are in love with the same woman, the daughter of Jewish parents who is along on the expedition to help how she can. No, it's not Schindler's List, nor is it Saving Private Ryan, but it's another good story, worth watching, about the Second World War. I'll be honest-I really enjoyed it.
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| Weighted Rating | : 7.3 |
| No. Ratings | : 20 | |
| No. Reviews | : 13 | |
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