El Alamein, The Line of Fire - Historum

**AlpinLuke** · November 2nd, 2012, 01:54 PM

That battle has remained in the memory of Italians, despite any consideration about the side Italians were on.

In 2002 Enzo Monteleone directed this dramatic movie showing the events and the personal stories of those days in Northern Africa.

I do doubt that the movie had distributed out of Italy [it was 2002], but I had occasion to see it on a pay tv last night and it was a good movie [very Italian, in the sense of how it deals with emotions].

**Belisarius** · November 2nd, 2012, 02:15 PM

Can you get it on You-tube?

**Spartacuss** · November 13th, 2012, 04:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlpinLuke

That battle has remained in the memory of Italians, despite any consideration about the side Italians were on.

In 2002 Enzo Monteleone directed this dramatic movie showing the events and the personal stories of those days in Northern Africa.

I do doubt that the movie had distributed out of Italy [it was 2002], but I had occasion to see it on a pay tv last night and it was a good movie [very Italian, in the sense of how it deals with emotions].

I have seen this movie, I think. It was in the Netflix queue. Is it based on a young, by the book officer who learns though combat how to be a real leader, and becomes deeply attached to his men?

**AlpinLuke** · November 13th, 2012, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Belisarius

Can you get it on You-tube?

Sorry for delay, I was no more thinking to this thread.

There is also the full version, but it's in Italian [at least this is what I've found on YouTube "El Alamein la linea del fuoco"]. In English there are some parts.

The tale is simple:

a young man, a student from Palermo, Serra, decides to leave as volunteer for Northern Africa. He was in the historical 28° Pavia [an Italian regimental in Pavia division, 10th Army Corp].

The movie shows how Italian soldiers [who arrived in North Africa sure to take part to a victorious campaign] found unsuitable equipments, poor supply chains and a bad strategical position [de facto he arrived already under the fire of British artillery ...].

The most intense moment is when, the Pavia, the Folgore and the Ariete are withdrawing and the commanders of the Corp of Army say they are "disengaging". Substantially the Italian forces on the land knew it was the end, but in perfect Mussolini style the high officers [not members of the elite forces on the ground] kept on spreading their absurd military propaganda.

The movie is more focused on the spirits of the soldiers and on their extreme sacrifice. It shows that the British Army was so impressed by the resistance of the retreating Italian elite forces that the Britons helped Italian military mobile field hospitals to take care of the wounded soldiers.