''Breakthrough'', also released as ''Steiner - Das Eiserne Kreuz, 2'' and ''Sergeant Steiner'' is a 1979

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about naval, air, or land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle scenes means that wa ...

set on the Western Front, specifically the Normandy coastline. The picture is a sequel to

Sam Peckinpah David Samuel Peckinpah (; February 21, 1925 – December 28, 1984) was an American film director and screenwriter. His 1969 Western epic '' The Wild Bunch'' received an Academy Award nomination and was ranked No. 80 on the American Film Institut ...

's ''

Cross of Iron ''Cross of Iron'' (German language, German: ''Steiner – Das Eiserne Kreuz'', lit. "Steiner – The Iron Cross") is a 1977 war film directed by Sam Peckinpah, featuring James Coburn, Maximilian Schell, James Mason and David Warner (actor), Dav ...

'', and includes several characters from that film. The film starred several big names including

Richard Burton Richard Burton (; born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s, and he gave a memorable p ...

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Jo ...

and

Rod Steiger Rodney Stephen Steiger (; April 14, 1925July 9, 2002, aged 77) was an American actor, noted for his portrayal of offbeat, often volatile and crazed characters. Cited as "one of Hollywood's most charismatic and dynamic stars," he is closely assoc ...

. Burton (Sergeant Steiner) and Helmut Griem (Major Stransky) assume the roles played by

James Coburn James Harrison Coburn III (August 31, 1928 – November 18, 2002) was an American film and television actor who was featured in more than 70 films, largely action roles, and made 100 television appearances during a 45-year career.AllmoviBi ...

and

Maximilian Schell Maximilian Schell (8 December 1930 – 1 February 2014) was an Austrian-born Swiss actor, who also wrote, directed and produced some of his own films. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the 1961 American film '' Judgment at Nuremberg'', ...

respectively in the original film. The supporting cast features Michael Parks and

Curd Jürgens Curd Gustav Andreas Gottlieb Franz Jürgens (13 December 191518 June 1982) was a German-Austrian stage and film actor. He was usually billed in English-speaking films as Curt Jurgens. He was well known for playing Ernst Udet in '' Des Teufels Gen ...

Klaus Löwitsch Klaus Löwitsch (8 April 1936 – 3 December 2002) was a German actor, best known in Germany for his starring role in the television detective series '' Peter Strohm''. He appeared in several films directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, begi ...

is the only actor from ''Cross of Iron'' to reprise his role.

Plot

Starting in late May 1944, during the German retreat on the Eastern Front, Captain Stransky ( Helmut Griem) orders Sergeant Steiner (

) to blow up a railway tunnel to prevent Russian forces from using it. Steiner's platoon fails in its mission after coming up against a Russian tank. He then takes a

furlough A furlough (; from nl, verlof, " leave of absence") is a temporary leave of employees due to special needs of a company or employer, which may be due to economic conditions of a specific employer or in society as a whole. These furloughs may be ...

to Paris just as the Allies launch their invasion of Normandy. Steiner's unit is transferred to France, occupying the village of St Bologne. General Hoffman (

) orders Steiner to cross into nearby enemy territory and confer with American Colonel Rogers (

) and General Webster (

), informing him that the High Command of the German Army (

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previou ...

) is plotting to assassinate Hitler and would like to surrender. The plan fails and American forces launch an attack on German forces in St Bologne where Stransky has planned an explosion to destroy both the Americans and the civilian inhabitants. Steiner clearly sympathises more with the Americans, even to the extent of killing his fellow soldiers.

Cast

as Sergeant Rolf Steiner *

as Colonel Rogers *

as General Webster * Michael Parks as Sergeant Anderson *

as General Hoffmann * Helmut Griem as Major von Stransky *

as Corporal Krüger *

Christoph Waltz Christoph Waltz (; born 4 October 1956) is an Austrian-German actor. Since 2009 he has been primarily active in the United States. His accolades include two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, two British Academy Film Awards and two Scre ...

as Paramedic * Günter Meisner as SS Officer

Reception and criticism

''Breakthrough'' was mostly financed by West German producers when it was released in 1979, after several changes were made to the sequel: for instance, the action was relocated from Russia to the Western Front and

replaced Coburn as Sgt Steiner. The film was panned by critics, who identified a confusing plot, poor dialogue, an aged cast and undistinguished acting.

References

External links

* {{Andrew V. McLaglen 1979 films 1970s war films 1970s English-language films English-language German films Films about the 20 July plot Films directed by Andrew McLaglen Films set in 1944 Films set in France 1970s German-language films German war films Western Front of World War II films West German films World War II films based on actual events Constantin Film films German World War II films 1970s German films