Attack on Leningrad

Leningrad (Attack on) (2007)

Leningrad (Attack on) is a 2009 Russian World War II drama about the dramatic siege of the Russian city Leningrad by the Nazi German invading forces. Due to a sudden shift of army units to other fronts, the German High Command decides that it is more effective (…) to starve the city and it’s 3mln. inhabitants to death, rather than taking the heavily defended city by force. The siege would eventually last about 2.5 years, from 8th September 1941 to a full lift of the siege of the city on 27th January 1944 taking an innumerable number of civilian and military lives.

British reporter Kate Davis (Mira Sorvino) gets stuck in the snowy and starving city during the last few weeks of 1941 and befriends police officer Nina Tsvetkova (Olga Sutulova) and her family. Kate’s friend, the American journalist Philip Barker (Gabriel Byrne), staying in Moscow to cover events there, is heartbroken and embarks on a dramatic journey to be reunited with Kate. In the meantime, Kate and Nina are fighting for their own survival and that of the people in the besieged city.

Even though the movie centers on the personal relations between the main characters, the movie has an epic first few minutes (quite like the beginning of Saving Private Ryan), in which the last defending battle is shown before Leningrad becomes fully enclosed. It must be noted that with the exception of police officer Nina none of the leading actors is actually seen handling a gun so for this reason most descriptions will simply say ‘Soviet army officer’ or ‘German soldier’.

The following weapons were used in the film Leningrad:

Soviet Army Guns

Nagant M1895

The Nagant M1895 revolver is used by police officer Nina (Olga Sutulova) as her personal side-arm throughout the movie.

Nagant M1895 - 7.62x38N

Nina taking cover from German fire in a trench with her Nagant M1895.

Nina using her Nagant M1895 to make sure that the orders she just delivered to a commanding officer at the frontline will be carried out.

A fine image of the Nagant M1895 being used by Nina to fire a warning shot.

Nina carefully searching a deserted building for looters.

Tokarev TT-33

A Tokarev TT-33 pistol is seen used by the Soviet army officer leading the last desperate charge agains the Germans before Leningrad is totally surrounded.

Tokarev TT-33 - 7.62x25mm Tokarev

Mosin Nagant M91/30

Most of the defenders of Leningrad are carrying the Mosin Nagant M91/30 rifle even though they appear to be movie-adapted versions with non-standard front sights and some sort of plug on the front. The rifle is seen with two types of bayonets; the typical pop-up spike bayonet (not unlike the one on old flintlock rifles) and a very untypical side-mounting that would not become standard until the Mosin Nagant M44 carbine.

Mosin Nagant M91/30 - 7.62x54R

A Soviet soldier carrying a Mosin Nagant M91/30 rifle with the typical pop-up spike bayonet. The bayonet was usually carried without a scabbard so it is not surprising that on the succeeding Mosin Nagant M44 carbine model a side-ways mounting was introduced.

A Mosin Nagant M91/30 rifle with the a-typical side-mounted bayonet. Also note the non-standard front sights and the strange plug as a flash-hider.

Mosin Nagant M44

In many scenes, the forces defending Leningrad are equipped with the Mosin Nagant M44 carbine, identifiable by the bayonet fixed to the right side of the rifle. The use of this carbine is anachronistic because it was not introduced until 1944, and this movie is set in the 1941/42 winter. Also, the Mosin Nagant M44’s do not appear to be standard models as they are equipped with non-standard front sights plus some sort of plug on the front.

Mosin Nagant M44 Carbine with attached side-folding bayonet - 7.62x54R

File:Leningrad-MosinM44-01.jpg

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File:Leningrad-MosinM44-02.jpg

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PPSh-41

The PPSh-41 machine gun is seen in the dramatic scenes where Nina Tsvetkova (Olga Sutulova) and other selected members of the Leningrad defence forces are given the dangerous task of guarding trucks supplying the city over the ‘Road of Death’. This is a make-shift highway over the frozen ice of Lake Ladoga that acts as the only supply line of the city during the winter.

PPSh-41 Submachine Gun - 7.62x25mm Tokarev

Maxim M1910/30

In several scenes, Soviet defensive positions are equipped with the somewhat outdated but reliable Maxim M1910/30 machine gun.

Maxim 1910/30 with Sokolov wheel mount and shield - 7.62x54R

A Maxim M1910/30 with the typical Sokolov shield is seen in a trench position in the opening scene.

A Maxim M1910/30 mounted on an air-defence tripod is seen when supplies are unloaded from ships that have crossed Leningrad’s only connection with the outside world, Lake Ladoga. It is assumed to be a Maxim M1910/30 but the barrel cover appears to be smooth and the flash hider appears to be larger than the regular one.

German Army Guns

Mauser Karabiner 98K

In several scenes, German soldiers are using Karabiner 98k’s. In most cases during the trench hand-to-hand combat, the rifle is equipped with a bayonet.

Karabiner 98k - 7.92x57mm

MP40

An MP40 (or possibly even an MP38, but there's not enough detail to tell for sure) is seen used by several German soldiers during the opening battle. In one instance, the MP40 is used by a German soldier as a club, which might be appropriate because of the single-columned MP40’s reputation of being prone to jams caused by bad weather circumstances on the Russian front.

MP40 – 9mm

MG34

The MG34 machine gun appears in several scenes, in most cases mounted on motorcycles.

MG34 7.92x57mm Mauser

In the scene where Kate Davis and other reporters visit a battlefield, a Russian reporter searches the remains of one of the killed drivers of the MG34 equipped motorcycles for food, showing the desperate food situation in the city.