On The Nameless Height
Encyclopedia
On The Nameless Height , also known in English as On an Unnamed Hill and Unidentified Heights, is a Russian-Belarusian TV film from 2004 in four parts, set in 1944 in the Second World War.
ian forests, close to the Polish
border, during Operation Bagration in the summer of 1944. After a short pause, the Red Army
is preparing to advance, but on one segment of the front there are two serious obstacles: an unnamed hill with unknown German strength, and a highly skilled German sniper
, who is killing off not only Russian officers, but also all captured German officers before they can be interrogated. Because of this, the local commander, Major Inozemtsev, suspects that the hill is a trap, which the Germans are very eager to keep a secret.
So, a female specialist sniper, Olga Pozdneyeva (Viktoriya Tolstoganova) arrives to eliminate the German sniper. On the same lorry with reinforcements are the carefree ex-convict soldier Kolya Malakhov, the new lieutenant for the unit's reconnaissance
platoon, Alexey Malyutin, and the platoon's very experienced staff sergeant, Ivan Bessonov, who is returning after a spell in hospital.
On arrival, Kolya is assigned to be Olga's assistant, and he immediately falls in love with her although she tries to keep a professional distance, while Lieutenant Malyutin and the unit's telephone operator, Katya Solovyov, are quickly attracted to each other.
While the deadline for the offensive is drawing closer, the reconnaissance platoon continues to try to kidnap German officers for interrogation, Olga plays a cat and mouse game with the German sniper, and everyone is trying to avoid the fanatical SMERSH
officer, Captain Shulgin, who suspects everyone of being a German spy or saboteur. Although Olga finally succeeds in killing the German sniper, they still don't know if the hill is a trap, so on the day of the offensive, the small reconnaissance platoon is ordered to take the hill before more troops are committed. They all know it's a suicide mission where all or most are going to die.
Plot
The location is the BelarusBelarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
ian forests, close to the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
border, during Operation Bagration in the summer of 1944. After a short pause, the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
is preparing to advance, but on one segment of the front there are two serious obstacles: an unnamed hill with unknown German strength, and a highly skilled German sniper
Sniper
A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....
, who is killing off not only Russian officers, but also all captured German officers before they can be interrogated. Because of this, the local commander, Major Inozemtsev, suspects that the hill is a trap, which the Germans are very eager to keep a secret.
So, a female specialist sniper, Olga Pozdneyeva (Viktoriya Tolstoganova) arrives to eliminate the German sniper. On the same lorry with reinforcements are the carefree ex-convict soldier Kolya Malakhov, the new lieutenant for the unit's reconnaissance
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
platoon, Alexey Malyutin, and the platoon's very experienced staff sergeant, Ivan Bessonov, who is returning after a spell in hospital.
On arrival, Kolya is assigned to be Olga's assistant, and he immediately falls in love with her although she tries to keep a professional distance, while Lieutenant Malyutin and the unit's telephone operator, Katya Solovyov, are quickly attracted to each other.
While the deadline for the offensive is drawing closer, the reconnaissance platoon continues to try to kidnap German officers for interrogation, Olga plays a cat and mouse game with the German sniper, and everyone is trying to avoid the fanatical SMERSH
SMERSH
SMERSH was the counter-intelligence agency in the Red Army formed in late 1942 or even earlier, but officially founded on April 14, 1943. The name SMERSH was coined by Joseph Stalin...
officer, Captain Shulgin, who suspects everyone of being a German spy or saboteur. Although Olga finally succeeds in killing the German sniper, they still don't know if the hill is a trap, so on the day of the offensive, the small reconnaissance platoon is ordered to take the hill before more troops are committed. They all know it's a suicide mission where all or most are going to die.
Main cast
- Viktoriya Tolstoganova - Olga, a sniper
- Alexey Chadov - Kolya Malakhov, private
- Vladimir Yaglych - Alexey Malyutin, lieutenant
- Andrey Golubev - Major Inozemtsev
- Anatoly Kot - Captain Shulgin, SMERSHSMERSHSMERSH was the counter-intelligence agency in the Red Army formed in late 1942 or even earlier, but officially founded on April 14, 1943. The name SMERSH was coined by Joseph Stalin...
- Alexander Pashutin - Ivan Bessonov, staff sergeant
- Anna Kazyuchits - Katya Solovyov, telephone operator
See also
- The Star is a Russian film from 2002 which also describes the activities of the Red Army scoutsReconnaissanceReconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
during Operation Bagration
External links
- Facts about the series on Russian site Kino-Teatr Retrieved 2011-11-04
- All four parts subtitled in English on YouTube, as Unidetified Heights Retrieved 2011-11-04