DVD
ISBN 024762103 – X
From Coda Publishing
Distrbuted by Pen and Sword Digital
MSRP – £9.99 – $15.00 US
After failing at Kusrk in 1943, Germany’s war machine was heading into a downward spiral which brought about the collapse of the Eastern Front and later the fall of Germany itself would inevitably happen. During this collapse, the Nazi propaganda campaign was in high gear. Weekly cinema news reels were produced and widely distributed to movie-going audiences throughout Germany. As propaganda goes, these highly detailed battle front news films would be publicized showing the German Army advancing and crushing Russia’s Red Army and it partisans; all the while the German front was faltering and heading for its unavoidable downfall.
Hitler’s War Machine: The Russian Front Late 1943, is one of a series of DVD’s that provides these propagandized news reels in their unedited and original format. The footage is raw and shows German Army advances into Russia with supporting narration to support the fabrications that Germans were winning the fight against “Soviet, Bolshevik and Jewish partisan” forces.
The narration of these films is completely given in German; however, translation of these news reels has provided subtitling in English. Listening and/or reading along to these films gives us a perspective sense of what German people were subjected to by the Nazi propagandists. The message was of a collective front that was strong and moving forward to crush their enemies and that while their boys were tired and working hard would win the fight.
Conclusion
From a historical point of view, these films are an incredible look into the propaganda of the times as well as it shows the German Army in action during this time period in history and often rare footage of various mechanized divisions on the move. From a modelling standpoint, the almost one hour of detailed battlefield footage seeing various Heer and Waffen SS troops, Panzer and other vehicles in action on the Eastern Front in 1943. A great DVD for anyone interested in the history of the Germany army and how the Nazi propaganda fueled.
Modelers Social Club Forum would like to thank Pen & Sword Books for providing this review copy.
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