Battle of the Bulge

Battle of the Bulge (1965)

24 mistakes

(4 votes)

Continuity mistake: In the initial German panzer attack against the Americans, a German tank 104's left side track and road wheels are damaged by a bazooka shell, resulting in a missing front road wheel and a loose/sagging track. However, when the tank turns off the road and goes down the slope, the left track is taut and the missing road wheel has magically appeared.

Scott215

Factual error: When he meets the general at the beginning of the film, Hessler refers to Conrad as "my corporal". He actually wears the rank insignia of an Unterfeldwebel, equivalent to a sergeant in the British Army and a staff sergeant in the US Army.

Necrothesp

Continuity mistake: Views from the German tanks show American troops being cut down and run over by the German tanks, but the long camera shots from the American side show no dead bodies anywhere on the battlefield.

Scott215

Other mistake: When Col. Kiley (Henry Fonda) shoots at Kessler with a M1 Garand, the rifle is missing the rear peep sight.

Col. Martin Hessler: They have the fuel and planes to fly Cake over the Atlantic Ocean.
Col. Martin Hessler: Do you know what this means?

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Trivia: Robert Shaw's character is based on Kampfgruppe Jochim Peiper of 1st SS Leibstandart Adolph Hitler, Panzer Division. Peiper was a ruthless but extremely effective officer who had learnt his trade in death on the Russian front. Peiper survived the battle and the war and although he was initially sentenced to death for his part in the Malmedy massacre his sentence was commuted. He was killed in France in 1976 when his house was firebombed in a revenge attack.

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Question: What is the English translation of the panzer song when Hessler meets his commanders?

Answer: I believe that in the film, the men are repeatedly singing only the first verse. However, I have found the complete translation of all five verses and posted it here: "The Panzer Song (Panzerlied) " 1: Whether in storm or in snow /Whether the sun smiles on us/ The day blazing hot /Or the night ice cold/ Our faces are dusty/ But our spirits are cheerful /Yes, our spirits are cheerful/ Our tank roars Into the windstorm. 2: With thundering engines /As fast as lightning/ We engage the enemy/ Safe in our tanks/ Far ahead of our comrades /In battle we stand alone/ Yes, stand alone Into enemy territory. 3: If an enemy tank /Appears in our sight /We ram throttles full/ And close with the foe! /We give our lives freely /For the army of our realm/ Yes, the army of our realm/ To die for Germany Is our highest honour. 4: With barriers and tanks/ Our opponent tries to stop us /We laugh at his efforts/ And travel around them/And when the guns threatingly/ Hide in the yellow sand/ Yes, in the yellow sand/ We search for paths /No-one else has found. 5: And if some day /Faithless luck abandons us /And we can't return home/ The deadly bullet strikes/ And fate calls us /Yes, fate calls us /Then our tank is An honourable grave. Source: http://defence.pk/threads/german-ww2-and-pre-ww2-march-songs.146130.

Michael Albert

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