''White Tiger'' (, translit. Byeli tigr) is a 2012 Russian

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

, directed by

Karen Shakhnazarov Karen Georgievich Shakhnazarov (; born 8 July 1952) is a Soviet and Russian filmmaker, producer, and screenwriter. He became the director general of Mosfilm in 1998. Biography Shakhnazarov is the son of a Georgy Shakhnazarov, a politician of A ...

and co-written with Aleksandr Borodyansky based on the novel ''The Tankman, or The White Tiger'' (, Tankist, ili "Byeli tigr") by Russian novelist Ilya Boyashov. The film is about a badly wounded Soviet

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

commander on the Eastern Front of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

who becomes obsessed with tracking down and destroying a mysterious, invincible

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

tank, which the Soviet troops call the "White Tiger". The

Soviets The Soviet people () were the citizens and nationals of the Soviet Union. This demonym was presented in the ideology of the country as the "new historical unity of peoples of different nationalities" (). Nationality policy in the Soviet Union ...

design a new, more powerful

T-34 The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank from World War II. When introduced, its 76.2 mm (3 in) tank gun was more powerful than many of its contemporaries, and its 60-degree sloped armour provided good protection against Anti-tank warfare, ...

tank and assign the tank commander the job of destroying the White Tiger. The film was selected as the Russian entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar at the

85th Academy Awards The 85th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2012 and took place on February 24, 2013, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, beginning at 5:30 p ...

Plot

In the aftermath of a tank battle in the summer of 1943, a tank driver is found alive in a disabled Soviet tank, among other wrecked vehicles. Miraculously recovering from burns over 90% of his body with no scarring, he has

retrograde amnesia In neurology, retrograde amnesia (RA) is the inability to access memories or information from before an injury or disease occurred. RA differs from a similar condition called anterograde amnesia (AA), which is the inability to form new memories f ...

: he does not know who he is, but retains all his skills. He is given the name Ivan Naydenov (from the Russian word найденный, "found") and returned to duty. Naydёnov believes he can communicate with tanks as if they were people, though he tries not to advertise this. In the meantime, rumors arise about a new, invincible Nazi tank that appears seemingly out of nowhere, wreaks destruction and disappears back into the forest. A captured German soldier describes it as a

Tiger I The Tiger I () was a Nazi Germany, German heavy tank of World War II that began operational duty in 1942 in North African Campaign, Africa and in the Soviet Union, usually in independent German heavy tank battalion, heavy tank battalions. It g ...

painted completely in white. This mysterious tank is dubbed the "White Tiger" by both Soviet and German forces. Naydёnov remembers something from his past: he was injured by this tank and the tank is dead. During a debrief after another tank battle with the "White Tiger" near a forest where the Soviets suffered major tank losses, they review reports that the "White Tiger" seems to appear at the battle ground only to disappear after the battle. They are puzzled by this because behind the forest is swamp land through which they believe is impossible for tanks to traverse. The Soviet officers believe the Tiger sank into the swamp behind the forest, but Naydenov is sure it is still out there somewhere in the forest. In response to this threat, the Soviets build a prototype tank, an upgraded version of a T-34/85 with stronger armor, a more powerful engine, stabilized for accurate firing on the move and only needing three crew members. The best of the best are chosen for the crew: Naydenov, the commander and driver; Kryuk, the gunner; and Berdyev, the loader. Naydenov is ordered to destroy the White Tiger. He conceals his tank in a hole dug in the forest, covers it with tree branches and uses another T-34 to lure the White Tiger into an ambush. The White Tiger appears, destroys the other T-34 and hits Naydenov's tank from behind at close range, but only inflicts minor damage before inexplicably retreating back into the forest. Naydenov's crew is puzzled on why the Tiger didn’t destroy them when it easily could have. Naydenov believes in "The Tank God". He thinks the Tank God wants him to destroy the White Tiger. He believes this is why he can understand the tanks and why he survives his battles, he thinks that when shells are fired at him his own tank warns him of the incoming danger and he avoids it. Naydenov becomes obsessed with finding the mysterious Nazi tank. He is convinced that the enemy tank is unmanned, a ghost of the war.

Counterintelligence Counterintelligence (counter-intelligence) or counterespionage (counter-espionage) is any activity aimed at protecting an agency's Intelligence agency, intelligence program from an opposition's intelligence service. It includes gathering informati ...

Major Fedotov comes to believe Naydenov and assists him. A captured German

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

also reveals that he has no knowledge of this Tiger and he remarks that the legend of the death tank is generating fear rather than hope in the German Army. While advancing, a Soviet tank force is completely wiped out by the White Tiger, which fires faster and more accurately than any human crew would be capable of doing, destroying tanks with every single shot. When it withdraws, Naydenov gives chase in his tank and comes upon an abandoned village. He detects and destroys a

Panzer IV The IV (Pz.Kpfw. IV), commonly known as the Panzer IV, is a German medium tank developed in the late 1930s and used extensively during the Second World War. Its ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz. 161. The Panzer IV was the most numer ...

concealed in a barn, then comes upon the White Tiger and engages it. Kryuk hits it, disabling its turret, but while maneuvering, Naydenov's T-34's gun barrel gets some mud stuck in it. The gun misfires and the barrel explodes when Kryuk tries to finish off the enemy, allowing the White Tiger to safely retreat. Fedotov attempts to convince his commanding

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

that both the White Tiger and the "born-again" Naydenov are creations not of man, but of the war itself. The general is unconvinced and sends him on a ten-day leave. After the

Battle of Berlin The Battle of Berlin, designated as the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, and also known as the Fall of Berlin, was one of the last major offensives of the European theatre of World War II. After the Vistula–Od ...

and the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany in May 1945, Fedotov meets Naydenov in a field and tries to convince him to go home, saying that the war is over. Naydenov disagrees, saying that the war will not truly end until the White Tiger is destroyed. He believes it is just biding its time, healing from its wounds and waiting to strike again. Fedotov returns to his vehicle, but when he turns around, Naydenov has vanished along with his tank. In the final scene,

Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

is shown seated in a large room with a fireplace, talking to a shadowy stranger and defending his actions during the war. His monologue begins with an observation that he and Germany will from now on be seen as monsters, then proceeds with an insinuation that the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

and his attack on Russia was only a realization of what all of Europe silently wanted and were uneasy to openly admit. He finally ends with saying that war has no beginning or end and that it is the original human state.

Cast

* Aleksey Vertkov as Ivan Naydenov *

Vitali Kishchenko Vitali Eduardovich Kishchenko (; born May 25, 1964) is a Soviet and Russian actor. He was awarded the Merited Artist of the Russian Federation in 2005. Vitali appeared in more than 70 films. Biography Vitali Kishchenko was born in Krasnoyarsk, ...

as Major Fedotov * Gerasim Arkhipov as Captain Sharipov * Aleksandr Bakhov as Kryuk * Vitaliy Dordzhiev as Berdyev * Dmitriy Bykovskiy-Romashov as General Smirnov * Valeriy Grishko as

Marshal of the Soviet Union Marshal of the Soviet Union (, ) was the second-highest military rank of the Soviet Union. Joseph Stalin wore the uniform and insignia of Marshal after World War II. The rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union was created in 1935 and abolished in ...

Georgy Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov ( 189618 June 1974) was a Soviet military leader who served as a top commander during World War II and achieved the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union. During World War II, Zhukov served as deputy commander-in-ch ...

* Vilmar Biri as Generaladmiral Hans-Georg von Friedeburg *

Klaus Grünberg Klaus Grünberg (born 20 November 1941 in Wismar, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its si ...

Generaloberst A ("colonel general") was the second-highest general officer rank in the German '' Reichswehr'' and ''Wehrmacht'', the Austro-Hungarian Common Army, the East German National People's Army and in their respective police services. The rank w ...

Hans-Jürgen Stumpff Hans-Jürgen Stumpff (15 June 1889 – 9 March 1968) was a German general during World War II and was one of the signatories to Germany's unconditional surrender at the end of the war. Military career Stumpff joined the Grenadier Regiment "Pr ...

* Vladimir Ilin as Chief of the Hospital * Dmitriy Kalyazin as young sailor * Karl Krantskovski as

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

* Andrey Myasnikov as General * Leonid Orlov as German POW * Christian Redl as

Generalfeldmarschall ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (; from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire, (''Reichsgeneralfeldmarsch ...

Wilhelm Keitel Wilhelm Bodewin Johann Gustav Keitel (; 22 September 188216 October 1946) was a German field marshal who held office as chief of the (OKW), the high command of Nazi Germany's armed forces, during World War II. He signed a number of criminal ...

* Maykl Shenks * Mariya Shashlova as Voennvrach

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:White Tiger 2012 films 2010s action war films 2012 science fiction action films 2010s science fiction war films 2010s German-language films 2010s Russian films 2010s Russian-language films Russian action war films Russian action adventure films Russian science fiction action films Russian science fiction war films Eastern Front of World War II films Films about amnesia Films about armoured warfare Films directed by Karen Shakhnazarov Films scored by Yuri Poteyenko Mosfilm films Films about Adolf Hitler Cultural depictions of Georgy Zhukov Films set in 1943 Films set in 1944 Films set in 1945 Russian World War II films 2012 multilingual films Russian multilingual films Films about immortality Russian-language action adventure films Russian-language war adventure films

Plot

Cast

See also

References

External links