Matialth Good concept, poorly executed.

MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

Lollivan It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Mehdi Hoffman There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

davyd-02237 I would like to suggest to you that this movie (although with subtitles) is one of those "cancel other engagements". I believe it to be true and starts close to the end of World War 2 and finishes in the 1950s. Russians were very cruel back then especially to german soldiers. A story of one man who never gave up. you may need a "handkerchief"! one of the finest films I have seen during this or any othe year

filmalamosa A prisoner escapes from the Gulag in Siberia and walks to freedom in Iran.This movie is watchable and well filmed but the story is too contrived. Any one who has read Solzhenitsyn would find this a candy coated adventure tale for children.It reminds me of a movie made from a book that is doctored to make it PC (politically correct) and more entertaining for the masses. The hero is helped through Siberia by hunters/gold prospectors and nursed back from near death by a native Siberian tribe. The natives are particularly sugary and far fetched. To add some romance he has a liaison with a young native girl.A Jew helps him the most with a passport. The Jew has a sudden heart attack so he doesn't have to turn him it...It is stupid and contrived what more can I say.DO NOT RECOMMEND

Dennis Littrell This is a German language film with English subtitles based on the novel by the same name which was based on a true story about a German POW in the aftermath of WWII who escaped a Siberia work camp and made an amazing 8,000-mile trek home to Munich to be reunited with his family.I haven't read the novel, but of course it was a novel and so much of it was made up. It doesn't matter however, since what counts in a movie is simply the movie itself. I am always a little put off when the blurbs for a film scream out: "Based on a true story!" So what? Sometimes that's significant and sometimes it isn't. In this case the fact that there actually existed a German POW who managed such an amazing escape is important. The exact details of what happened to him would be wonderful to have. But in lieu of that, we do have this wonderful movie.Bernhard Bettermann stars as Clemens Forell, and he is perfect for the part. To survive such an epic adventure the person has to be strong of body and strong of will. Bettermann looks as though he could actually do something like this, except for the fact that he is so tall and pale I suspect he would stand out and be easily identified as a foreigner in those strange lands through which he trekked. Also a bit not so realistic is the Soviet camp commander who personally chases Forell all the way to the Iranian border (although that resulted in a nice ironic scene on the bridge at the border between Iran and what--I think--is Turkmenistan). In reality there were probably several Soviet officers who played that part. And I would also liked to have seen a little more about how he found enough to eat. And finally it is clear that the last parts of his journey were sped up a bit as though the filmmakers were in a hurry. But these are small quibbles.I don't know if this "coloration" (as I will call it) was in the book, but what director Harvey Martins does is make the tall and "Aryan" Forell experience some of the same horrors that the Jews experienced. In the beginning he is in a cattle car and nearly starved to death as he is taken to the Siberian lead mines. He is in rags and nearly frozen and gets kicked around by sadistic soldiers. If you saw just this part of the movie you would swear it was about the Jews being sent to a concentration camp. In the camp after Forell is caught in an early escape attempt he is shown being beaten by his fellow soldiers, who of course, were punished because he tried to escape. This was exactly the sort of thing the Nazis did in the occupied countries during WWII—if a single German was killed, that killing would be revenged many times over. Later, one of the people who helped Forell is a Jew who lost relatives to the Nazis. Nonetheless he helps Forell, and in doing so demonstrates not only a superior morality, but the kind of courage that is rare. And why did he do it? Because that is the kind of person he is, and that is the kind of persons we all should be.While Forell is a positive, even a heroic figure, and a nice change for Germans who have to endlessly read about and see Germans portrayed in a most negative way throughout their whole lives, the movie itself tends to be neutral politically.The scenes of the snow and the forests and the various places that Forell travels through are nicely done. The ending is exquisite and brought me to tears.(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon!)

Galvantor Atlast the wait is over, we see a German POW portrayed in good sense,up against all obstacles,hurdles a human could ever tolerate.Its about Clemens Forell(POW)making his way all through the feet to him hometown. I donna want to spoil the plot by detailing the events.The film scores in its background & theme music,adds Chilling effect to the frozen sheet.The exotic locations is visual treat for eyes. Irina Pantaeva locks you in her charm and beauty.Even though the film ends in a positive note,you will suffer from the DISTANT WALK.This film made me look beyond the horizon Hollywood, and ignited a liking for German movies.A great movie if you have the TIME. If you like this movie you will also like THE GREAT ESCAPE(pow classic)