Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Tayyab Torres Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Robert D. Ruplenas It's true that this movie was produced at a time when we were allied with the Soviet Union against Hitler. But, as Churchill said, when asked about the morality of allying with such a murderous, totalitarian regime, "I would have made a pact with the devil to defeat the Nazis." It was Hollywood's job to laud our allies, and to do so they enlisted Lillian Hellman, longtime Communist dupe and staunch defender of Stalin, right into the 50's. For the score they enlisted Aaron Copland, a fine composer whose Communist sympathies were none the less well known. The result is a love letter to the glories of the Worker's Paradise and the joys of life on the collective farm. No mention here of gulags, the KGB, political murders or food shortages. This film is Exhibit A in defernse of those who were concerned about Communist propoganda in the film industry.

jmahon-48518 A great cast, good sets, accurate historical costumes and plausible plot. All this is mired by a needless pro-collective/communist depiction of Ukraine under Stalin's reign of terror (which culminated in over 5 million Ukrainians starving to death). This happy go lucky peasant life is equivalent to Hollywood's "Step n Fetch" depiction of African Americans during this same time period. True it is a war time propaganda film but the Hollywood socialist bias and blindness to Communist terror would result in the McArthism backlash of the 50s. Film historians have rightly attcked the abuses of McCarthism but never truly come to grips with Hollywood's failure to address the mass murders and reign of terror of Communism.

chaswe-28402 Skip the first half of rural fun and games. Substitute Hungarians v Russians, or Armenians v Turks, or any other convenient pair of victims and aggressors for Ukrainians v Germans. Then settle down to enjoy a well-acted, well-directed, gripping and moving 100% fictional story. The narrative unwinds in a manner far superior to patriotic junk like Saving Private Ryan. The trajectory of the one is curiously the reverse of the other. SPR starts dramatically, but slowly stutters to a bathetic finale. NS starts boringly, but accelerates towards a most compelling end. On balance, SPR is pure and painful garbage. Making allowances for its date, this isn't.I didn't pick up what North Star stands for.. Was that the name of the village ? Odd name, if so. Nevertheless I was well entertained by this film. It stands the test.

arfdawg-1 The Plot.In a peaceful Ukrainian village, the school year is just ending in June 1941. Five young friends set out for a walking trip to Kiev, but their travels are brutally interrupted when they are suddenly attacked by German planes, in the first wave of the Nazi assault on the Soviet Union. When the village itself is attacked and occupied, most of the men flee to the hills to form a guerrilla unit. The others resist the Nazis as well as possible, but soon the village is placed under the command of a Nazi doctor who begins using the town's children as a source of constant blood transfusions for wounded German soldiers. Meanwhile, the small group of young persons tries desperately to take a supply of firearms to the guerrillas.WW2 propaganda with lots of heavy hitters in front AND behind the camera. But it doesn't gel. It's slow and heavy on an American message even though this is supposed to be the Ukraine. (AND BTW, why are they all speaking American?)There is an inordinate amount of filler and rear screen projection. ZZZzzz.I found myself bored beyond belief and wound up waiting for Von Stroheim. Keep waiting. He shows up nearly an hour into this movie and by then, you'll be bailing.