I am writing a fanfic about Mane 6 in WW2, with Fluttershy's story set in Eastern Front. I look up to use Enemy At The Gates scenes for inspirations, but I found people arguing about how accurate it is. It gave me migraine.... So, can you guys answer my questions? Thanks!

1.Did the Commissars use barrier troops to prevent retreat?
2.Did the Red Army, by that time, has a lot of untrained, inexperienced recruits?
3.Did the "First man gets an unloaded rifle. The second, ammunition. When the first is killed, the second picks up rifle and shoots" and "Suicide charge" tactics were used?
4.Did the Commissars fought along side their soldiers?

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I would say the top three are true and I'm not sure about the fourth. I know the main issue people have with it is Jude Law doesn't take on a Russian accent so you have an Englishman running around Stalingrad

I would have to agree that the first two are accurate but, with the third question you have was during the latter part of the battle I think but still true. Suicide charges were the official term for what they did, the Russian military at the time was enormous and at the time the majority of troops that were sent to Stalingrad were conscripts in a sense and had nor formal training. So what they did was try to overwhelm German troops with the sheer numbers of men and often times(as shown in the movie) there was massive casualties on those who took part. Now on to Commissars, they are essentially Political officers there to promote party ideas and to keep moral up( If you want a good example look up Imperial Guard Commissars to get a good picture) They most often didn't fight along side the common soldier they were usually in the back or in the case of Stalingrad enforcing order 227(Which entails that famous "Not one step back!" line) as well if the time called, executing "cowards and traitors to the motherland." But when you write this fic please do some research and not use the movie solely as a source of information (I'm a bit of a history nut about WW2 in general feel free to ask any questions.) I suggest 20th century battles and other documentaries. Anyways good luck Winterman!

5947940 Very Innaccurate. The Order of Not one Step back was a general non retreat order more to say you don't retreat but stand and fight. Commissars didn't use barrier troops except in Penal Battalions and against Units filled with political dissidents. The 1 man gets a rifle wasn't true either. The Russian Industrial Might was too great for that and by Stalingrad the war was in reverse with the germans on the run. Commissars were political officers, key word being officers. They merely ensured no one badmouthed the government and executed disloyal troops.

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1: Yes, as of Stavka Directive No. 1919, each rifle regiment was supposed to have a company of barrier troops under NKVD command. Though they weren't used in the way shown, more often they'd detain the retreating troops. But there was a serious issue of retreat and desertion in the Red Army so this was Stalin's way of fixing it, no thanks to his previous Purges.
2: Yes, a lot of soldiers in the Red Army were untrained conscripts. Though the Siberian troops were generally of better quality. Even when they had superior equipment, like the T-34 at the start of Barbarossa, a lot of their tank crews would just abandon the tank after the first hit.
3: Not entirely sure, I've heard some conflicting things but I wouldn't say it'd be entirely wrong. The Russians had supply problems in both world wars; during the start of WW1 some crazy figure like 1-in-4 or 5 Russian troops didn't have a rifle. I'm not sure about WW2.
4: Only when the front reached them.

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This guy will provide you with a number of answers to your questions. In his rant against the game Company of Heroes 2 (which takes a lot of influence from "Enemy at the Gates") he points out a lot of the stupid stuff that movies and video games have done in portraying the Russians in WW2. Hope you find it informative.

While there may be inaccuracies, I still find it to be a pretty good film. The first two most definitely happened I can see the third in the beginning stages of the eastern front or in emergency situations. and as for the fourth they were more or less there to keep the troops true to the communist party really only fighting when the front came to them I believe.

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1. Yes there were units known as Barrier Troops/Blocking Troops, under NKVD control (and there were SS units as well) and they were authorized to fire on their own men if they retreated following both Hitler and Stalin's No Retreat Orders
2. Most veteran Red Army units had been destroyed during Barbarossa, or were rendered ineffective due to Stalin's purges, and the heavy losses the Red Army had suffered during the invasion, so the vast majority of Red Army troops in 1942 were raw recruits, and partisans, with some veteran units that had escaped the disasters of 1941 or had fought at Moscow and Leningrad
3. Yes and No, prior to Operation Uranus, the Red Army forces defending Stalingrad and being poured into it were faced with supply problems, so like the old Imperial Army there probably were Russian soldiers going into battle with out anything more then their bare hands, and once again the Red Army by 1942 had lost a lot of material so chances are early in the battle they lacked the supplies needed to arm all their troops, who had to scavenge weapons and ammunition from dead German and Soviet troops but more then likely with all efforts on the Volga being put into defending Stalingrad they were probably getting all the weapons they needed.
4. Yes and No, the Commissars were Political Officers whose job it was to insure the officers and soldiers were loyal to Stalin, on the surface that hints that they wouldn't have seen combat, but more then likely they did since their prescience instilled both fear of Stalin's wrath and patriotic motivation to fight, since Hitler issued orders that any Commissar taken prisoner was to be killed on sight

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