One Inch from Victory

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Newsreel footage documents world history and politics from Russia in 1914 to the German invasion in 1941. The Russian Revolution led to the ascent of power by Vladimir Lenin, who promised a Communist utopia. Instead, the Russians were given massive upheavals in society and economy and in 1922, 114 revolutionaries were put on trial for crimes against the Soviet government. Lenin's death in January, 1924, led to a funeral attended by thousands and the takeover by Joseph Stalin. U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt established diplomatic relations with the Soviets. German footage and newsreels chronicle the German invasion of Russia, from the Battle of Leningrad to the destruction of Kharkov to the Battle of Rostov on 22 November 1941. Further footage reveals the disaster of Lidice in occupied Czechoslovakia and the siege of Sevastopol in the Crimea. When the Russians finally drive the Germans out of Rostov, Iran becomes a focal point. With the assistance of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran, British and U.S. ships can deliver supplies to the troops fighting the Nazis. Germany declares war on the United States in December 1941, Lend-Lease shipments travel directly to Russia through Vladivostok and Murmansk. Soviet ambassador Maxim Litvanoff, U.S. Vice President Henry A. Wallace, Lend-Lease administrator Edward Stettinius, T. V. Soong of China, and British ambassador Lord Halifax are seen sampling dehydrated foods to celebrate the anniversary of Lend-Lease. Time after time, the Russians defend a city then flee it, leaving the Germans to find everything destroyed, no loot left behind. The siege of Stalingrad is a horror, but the Russians finally drive away the Germans in February, 1943. This documentary makes plain in a way that succeeding reportage and history lessons did not, that the Russians suffered the bulk of the war and that the Allies could not have won without them.