Cross of Iron (1977): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1977, Cross of Iron is an action, drama, war and history film directed by Sam Peckinpah, running about 132 minutes. “Captain Stransky, you are the rest of my platoon” — that tagline sets the tone.

What it’s about. It is 1943, and the German army—ravaged and demoralised—is hastily retreating from the Russian front. In the midst of the madness, conflict brews between the aristocratic yet ultimately pusillanimous Captain Stransky and the courageous Corporal Steiner. Stransky is the only man who believes that the Third Reich is still vastly superior to the Russian army. However, within his pompous persona lies a quivering coward who longs for the Iron Cross so that he can return to Berlin a hero. Steiner, on the other hand is cynical, defiantly non-conformist and more concerned with the safety of his own men rather than the horde of military decorations offered to him by his superiors.

Who’s in it. Cross of Iron stars James Coburn as Unteroffizier / Feldwebel Rolf Steiner, Maximilian Schell as Hauptmann Stransky, James Mason as Oberst Brandt and David Warner as Hauptmann Kiesel, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 7.0/10, Cross of Iron has been warmly received by audiences. It went on to earn $201 at the box office.

Where to watch. In US you can stream it on Amazon Prime Video, Cultpix and Amazon Prime Video with Ads and rent or buy it from Amazon Video. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Cross of Iron page.

If you liked it. Fans of Cross of Iron tend to enjoy The Dark Knight, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Inception and The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.