Russia's War - Blood upon the Snow

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Contents 1 General Information 2 Cover 3 Information 3.1 The Darkness Descends 3.2 The Night before Midnight 3.3 The Goths Ride East 3.4 Between Life and Death 3.5 The Fight from Within 3.6 The Cauldron Boils 3.7 The Citadel 3.8 False Dawn 3.9 The Fall of the Swastika 3.10 The Cult of Personality 4 Screenshots 5 Technical Specs 6 Links 6.1 Further Information 6.2 Release Post 6.3 Official Website 6.4 Related Documentaries 6.5 ed2k Links

[edit] General Information

History, Sociopolitical, War Documentary narrated by Nigel Hawthorne and published by Others in 1997 - English narration

[edit] Cover

[edit] Information

Russia's War: Blood Upon the Snow brings to life the story of the people of the Soviet Union during World War II who struggle to survive the tyrannical reign of Joseph Stalin. A compelling story of dictatorship, bloody battles, and endless courage as the Soviet people combat not only Hitler and the Germany Army, but their own leader as well. Hosted by former US Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, this 10-hour program features never-before-seen Russian images, once-secret documents, and leading Russian historians to explore Russia from 1924 through 1953.

• A review of the same documentary by Dr. Evan Mawdsley,University of Glasgow. Partial quote :

"The war between Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia remains a subject of great fascination. The campaign clearly had a vital effect on the outcome of the Second World War as a whole. It was an historical drama with unpredictable turning points. And it was fought on an vast scale and with a correspondingly vast scale of casualties. There are different ways of trying to comprehend the enormity of what the Russians still call 'The Great Patriotic War'. The book under review is a companion to an ambitious television documentary made in the mid-1990s. They share the same title (although the documentary had the subtitle 'Blood upon the Snow'). The documentary was an Anglo-Russian co-production and credited in Britain to Video Collection International. As far as this reviewer knows the series has not yet been transmitted on terrestrial television in the U.K. and is available only on video. There is no mention of the television series on the book's jacket.

The 'Russia's War' television documentary was a prestige production, with ten 52 minute episodes. Some of the episodes were introduced by Henry Kissinger. Nigel Hawthorne served as the narrator. The important Russian historians Dmitrii Volkogonov (Stalin's biographer) and Mikhail Semiriaga were credited as consultants, alongside Richard Overy; both Volkogonov and Semiriaga appeared on screen in various episodes."

[edit] The Darkness Descends

Lenin dies and leaves behind a power struggle for the leadership of the Soviet empire. He also leaves a testament--a fatal warning against Stalin's ambition. Nevertheless, Stalin rises to power and begins his war against the Soviet people an assault on the peasantry and mysterious assassination of political rivals and on the eve of the war with Germany, his disastrous purge of the Red Army.

[edit] The Night before Midnight

Hitler becomes ever more aggressive. In Spain, Fascism and Communism face each other for the first time, while the purges in the Soviet Union reach a crescendo. In foreign affairs, Stalin plans the most astounding about-face of the century. Hitler and Stalin become allies, and they invade and partition Poland between them.

[edit] The Goths Ride East

The Germans invade the Soviet Union, leading to chaos and confusion as the Red Army falls back. Stalin, paralyzed by the shock, retreats to his dacha. Minsk, Kiev, and Smolensk fall. Stalin returns from hiding and signs the infamous Order 270, branding captured Soviet officers as traitors and committing their wives to forced labor. With the first snows, the Wehrmacht arrives at the gates of Moscow.

[edit] Between Life and Death

The Germans are at the gates of Moscow. The winter closes in and starvation claims thousands of lives in the besieged city of Leningrad. The Red Army counterattacks on the Moscow front.

[edit] The Fight from Within

During the war in the occupied Soviet Union, many oppressed Soviet citizens welcome Hitler, but their enthusiasm is short-lived as they discover his plans. The Partisan resistance begins without Stalin's support. Then, as he begins to accept the Partisans, he provides them with supplies.

[edit] The Cauldron Boils

The Wehrmacht thrusts south toward the oil fields of the Caucasus. On pain of death, Stalin specifically prohibits any retreat on the battlefield. The formation of the infamous Penal Battalions starts and the battle for Stalingrad begins.

[edit] The Citadel

During the spring stalemate, all eyes turn to Kursk. Soviet war production, now moved out of the reach of German bombers, increases dramatically. The Germans prepare to meet the Red Army on the plains of Kursk. This is the greatest tank battle in the history of warfare.

[edit] False Dawn

1944 is the year of victories. After a 900-day siege, the Soviets finally liberate Leningrad. The Red Army pushes westward and beings to retake the territories occupied by the Germans for so long. Once again Stalin has plans for the people who suffer under the occupation.

[edit] The Fall of the Swastika

Germany is now on the brink of defeat. As the Red Army approaches Berlin, Hitler mobilizes both young and old to defend the doomed city. With the fall of Berlin and the death of his old enemy. Stalin turns once again tot he control of his own people.

[edit] The Cult of Personality

Russians praise Stalin for the victory he alone claims. As old age creeps up on him, Stalin's obsessive paranoia continues and he further persecutes his people. The threat of the atomic bomb block his plans for territorial expansion. The Cold War prevails. In 1953, Stalin dies.

[edit] Screenshots

[edit] Technical Specs

• File Name ........... : Russias.War.Blood.Upon.the.Snow.01of10.The.Darkness.Descends.XviD.MP3.DD.avi
• Total Size (MB) ... : 348.74 MB
• Duration .............. : 00:44:45

• Video Codec ....... : XviD MPEG-4 codec
• Resolution .......... : 640 x 480
• Aspect Ratio ....... : 1.33:1
• Video Bitrate ...... : 961 KB/s
• Framerate .......... : 29.97 FPS
• Quality Factor ..... : 0.104 B/px

• Audio Codec ....... : MPEG-1 Layer 3 (MP3)
• Audio Bitrate ...... : 128 KB/s
• Channels ............ : 2 Ch
• Sampling Rate .... : 44100 Hz

• Source .............: TV capture, via a digitaldistractions torrent

[edit] Links

[edit] Further Information

• Amazon.com has the VHS tape set. Never made in DVD format.

[edit] Release Post

• MVGroup.org (ed2k)
• MVGroup.org (torrent)
• FileHeaven.org
• VeryCD.com
• xfileshare.co.uk

[edit] Official Website

[edit] Related Documentaries

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[edit] ed2k Links