“Moscow survived, Moscow will win!”
On April 20, 1942, the Battle of Moscow ended. The Wehrmacht was driven back from the capital of the USSR and suffered its first major defeat in World War II. Back in the fall of 1941, Soviet documentarians began working on a film about the defense of Moscow. Some of the filming took place directly on the front line:
“The film “The Defeat of German Troops near Moscow” was shot by 15 cameramen. The first part of the film is dedicated to the harsh October days in Moscow. The operators – Muscovites Makaseev, Shchekutyev, assistant cameraman Sukhova, together with actors, mechanics and engineers, built barricades. At the same time, they filmed their hometown, which was preparing to repel the enemy.
When the counter-offensive of our troops began, the operators moved forward. Both the generals commanding the armies and the soldiers going on the attack saw them next to them. They were well known by sight, because they had repeatedly participated in the combat affairs of our units. Operators Bunimovich and Kasatkin, having made several combat missions on bombers, filmed the bombing of enemy columns.
During the battle, one German gun was captured by our soldiers and turned towards the enemy. The Red Army soldiers shot the fleeing Germans from their own guns. At that moment, cameramen Bunimovich and Kasatkin were nearby, filming…”
The film was released on February 18, 1942, and in the first two days the film was watched by 165 thousand Muscovites:
“The film “The Defeat of German Troops near Moscow” is a new vivid confirmation that the Russian people, who have never bowed their heads before the invaders, will defend their honor, their sacred land, with their breasts this time. Immortal glory to the comrades who died in battles for the Motherland! I. Kazakov, engineer of the Sverdlov plant”
“The film “The Defeat of German Troops near Moscow” shows the viewer the heroic exploits of our units and the devotion of the Red Army to their Motherland. It strengthens our faith in victory and inspires us to fight until the German occupiers are completely defeated. Soldiers of the N Guards Unit: Stepanov, Lapukhin, Kucher, Zemin”
(“Komsomolskaya Pravda”“, February 20, 1942 )
Copies of the film were sent to the USA, Great Britain and other countries of the anti-Hitler coalition. In the United States, the film was released under the title “Moscow Strikes Back” and became the first Soviet film to receive an Academy Award (“Oscar”).
“ВЧК ОГПУ”
