Cross of Iron

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Cross of Iron

R

Released Jan 28, 1977

1h 59m

War

Drama

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Popcornmeter

71%

Tomatometer

21 Reviews

87%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

During World War II, Cpl. Rolf Steiner (James Coburn) is a well-respected member of the German military and a recipient of the Iron Cross, Germany's highest military honor. Envious of Steiner's award, Capt. Hauptmann Stransky (Maximilian Schell) clashes with Steiner while leading soldiers into battle along the Russian front. Desperate to receive his own Iron Cross, Stransky takes the credit for a significant attack and sparks a heated rivalry with Steiner.

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Kevin Maher

Times (UK)

There is brutal and beguiling power here.

Rated: 4/5

Nov 17, 2023

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Eric Henderson

Slant Magazine

Cross of Iron would almost seem a proper mea culpa by Peckinpah for his controversial career.

Rated: 2.5/4

Apr 17, 2006

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Vincent Canby

New York Times

Mr. Peckinpah's least interesting, least personal film in years, a hysterically elaborate, made-in-Yugoslavia war spectacle, the work of international financiers and a multinational cast.

Rated: 1.5/5

May 9, 2005

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Jack Hawkins

HeyUGuys

Its cynical anti-war message remains dour and unsentimental, but the wonders of 4K restoration mean Cross of Iron has never looked or sounded so good.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 31, 2023

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Steve Warren

The Barb (Atlanta)

Cross of Iron says nothing new or better than countless war movies of the past.

May 6, 2023

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

…a great, thought-provoking, guelling film that deserves to carry an appreciative audience from generation to generation…

Rated: 5/5

Jul 14, 2022

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M D

Like most good war movies this is really an antiwar movie. It covers WW2 combat on a collapsing eastern front. This is combat on a very human level, cycling through the range of human emotions. But as they say, in the end it is about men, and women, even children, trying to stay alive while also helping each other; except for the bad guys who see others as mere stepping stones to a false "glory."

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/06/25

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Mark B

This is a deferent kind of war movie. Definitely shows the horrors of war and the best and the worst of people. Different in that you do not really have a side Russian or German to see as the “good guys” but you see the individual soldiers for better or worse. Not a rah rah war movie but well worth your time.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/29/24

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David C

THis movie is not what you call Academy Award materiel. It is about the horror of War in the same vein as "All quiet on the Western FRont". For that it stands by itself!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/05/24

Full Review

Sgt S

Peckinpah at his best with a top notch war movie. Coburn also in fine form. The look and action of the film is hugely immersive and you feel you are in front line with the characters. Unusual to have the German perspective even if only one is portrayed as an actual Nazi. "And I will show you where the Iron Crosses grow……………"

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

07/11/23

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kevin o

...brutal ww2 film about Germans fighting the Russians. Gets better on repeated viewings.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/19/23

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Audience Member

During World War II, Cpl. Rolf Steiner (James Coburn) is a well-respected member of the German military and a recipient of the Iron Cross, Germany's highest military honor. Envious of Steiner's award, Capt. Hauptmann Stransky (Maximilian Schell) clashes with Steiner while leading soldiers into battle along the Russian front. Desperate to receive his own Iron Cross, Stransky takes the credit for a significant attack and sparks a heated rivalry with Steiner The war scenes are pulled off nicely and director Sam Peckinpah knows how to capture its intensity The film just stays past its welcome and it gets tough to actually invest in the soldiers But it is one of the last good efforts of this genre

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

Full Review

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Sam Peckinpah

Director

James Coburn

Feldwebel Rolf Steiner

Maximilian Schell

Hauptmann Stransky

James Mason

Oberst Brandt

David Warner

Hauptmann Kiesel

Klaus Lowitsch

Unteroffizier Krüger

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Synopsis

During World War II, Cpl. Rolf Steiner (James Coburn) is a well-respected member of the German military and a recipient of the Iron Cross, Germany's highest military honor. Envious of Steiner's award, Capt. Hauptmann Stransky (Maximilian Schell) clashes with Steiner while leading soldiers into battle along the Russian front. Desperate to receive his own Iron Cross, Stransky takes the credit for a significant attack and sparks a heated rivalry with Steiner.

Director: Sam Peckinpah
Producer: Wolf C. Hartwig
Screenwriter: Julius J. Epstein, James Hamilton, Willi Heinrich, Walter Kelley
Distributor: Warner Home Vídeo, AVCO Embassy Pictures, Hen's Tooth Video Inc. [us]
Production Co: Terra Filmkunst, Radiant Film GmbH, EMI Films Ltd., Jadran Film, Incorporated Television Company, Rapid Film
Rating: R
Genre: War, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 28, 1977, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 20, 2017
Runtime: 1h 59m
Sound Mix: Mono

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