The Battle of Neretva (1969)

★ 6.8 2h 55m IMDb
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In January 1943 the German army, afraid of an Allied invasion of the Balkans, launched a great offensive against Yugoslav Partisans in Western Bosnia. The only way out for Partisan forces and thousands of refugees was the bridge on the river Neretva.

The Battle of Neretva

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Cast

Yul Brynner
Yul Brynner as Vlado Died 1985 · Vladivostok, Russia Yul Brynner (July 11, 1920 – October 10, 1985) was a Russian-born American actor of stage and film. He was best known for his portrayal of Mongkut, king of Siam, in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical...
Franco Nero
Franco Nero as Capitano Michele Rossi Age 84 · San Prospero Parmense, Emilia-Romagna, Italy Francesco Clemente Giuseppe Sparanero (born November 23, 1941), known professionally as Franco Nero, is an Italian actor, producer, and director. His breakthrough role was as the title character in th...
Curd Jürgens
Curd Jürgens as General Lohring Died 1982 · Solln, Germany [now Munich, Germany] Curd Gustav Andreas Gottlieb Franz Jürgens (13 December 1915 – 18 June 1982) was a German-Austrian stage and film actor. He was usually billed in English-speaking films as Curt Jurgens..
Hardy Krüger
Hardy Krüger as Oberst Krenzer Died 2022 · Berlin, Germany Hardy Krüger (born Franz Eberhard August Krüger; 12 April 1928 – 19 January 2022) was a German actor. Born in Wedding, Berlin, Germany, he is thought of as one of the greatest German actors of the 196...
Sylva Koscina
Sylva Koscina as Danica Died 1994 · Zagreb, Croatia, Yugoslavia (now Zagreb, Croatia) Sylva Koscina (Italian pronunciation: [ˈsilva ˈkɔʃʃina]; born Silvija Košćina, pronounced [sǐlʋija kǒʃtɕina]; 22 August 1933 – 26 December 1994) was a Yugoslav-born Italian actress, maybe best remembe...
Orson Welles
Orson Welles as Četnik Died 1985 · Kenosha, Wisconsin, USA George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio....

Audience Reviews

CinemaSerf 7/10 Jul 21, 2025
Though there isn’t too much by way of detailed characterisation here, this is certainly one of the most affecting depictions of the Second World War you’re likely to watch. The Nazis are getting beaten in North Africa and are terrified that this might lead to an Allied landing somewhere in the Balkans. To that end, General Löhring (Curd Jürgens) is ordered to work with his Italian allies and with their Chetnik Yugoslavian fighters to defeat the army of Joseph Tito’s communist forces. On paper, it appears to be the simplest of pincer movements at he has command of vastly superior forces, but the defenders are made of stern stuff and although significantly outnumbered, outgunned, weighed down with many hundreds of refugees and dealing with reports of typhus spreading freely, they determine to get to the fast-flowing Neretva river and cross the bridge to some semblance of safety. That’s the plan, anyway, but with the winter snow at it’s January height and conditions in terms of materiel, food and water all getting desperate, this plan is going to have to change as circumstances change. There are a few faces like Yul Brynner, Franco Nero, Hardy Kruger and Orson Welles appearing from time to time, but this isn’t a film about stars. It’s a film about the perseverance of the ordinary soldiers facing a constant stream of bullets and shelling from tanks and artillery whilst they are hungry, cold, and sometimes reduced to taking shelter behind gravestones. There is a limited attempt to explain the internal and sometimes quite internecine political divides between both sides that is a little undercooked, but in some ways that helps create the sense of confusion that prevailed on both sides as the parties vied for supremacy. The visual effects are impressive as they really do offer us something of the true atrocities and brutality of war. Sacrifices are having to be made by families and loved ones, difficult orders given and obeyed, and all while these people are attacked indiscriminately from land and sky. It’s a battle where winning, for anyone, is merely surviving long enough to fight another day and director Veljko Bulajic manage to convey well the true horrors of mechanised conflict, pride and determination.

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