Deliberate mistake: In the scene inside General Kohler's command center when Kohler is giving Colonel Hessler a tour of the war room he points out to Hessler a clock on the wall whose increments represent 1 hour and that the attack has to be over within so many hours. Later in the movie, just when the attack starts, this dormant clock's hand immediately springs forward and ticks through 2 increments, thus representing 2 hours passing in 2 seconds.
Battle of the Bulge (1965)
1 deliberate mistake
Directed by: Ken Annakin
Starring: Henry Fonda, Robert Ryan, Robert Shaw, Dana Andrews
Factual error: In the final scene showing the retreating German army, the land they are travelling over is fairly flat and devoid of trees. The Battle of the Bulge was fought in the thickly forested and hilly Ardennes Forest.
Col. Martin Hessler: Germans are still the best toy makers in the World.
Trivia: The tank models used by the German commanders at their headquarters look just like the actual King Tiger and Sherman tanks used by both sides during the late part of the war, whereas the tanks used in the film look nowhere near like actual German and American tanks used during the battle.
Question: What is the English translation of the panzer song when Hessler meets his commanders?
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Answer: I believe that in the film, the men are repeatedly singing only the first verse. However, I have found the complete translation of all five verses and posted it here: "The Panzer Song (Panzerlied) " 1: Whether in storm or in snow /Whether the sun smiles on us/ The day blazing hot /Or the night ice cold/ Our faces are dusty/ But our spirits are cheerful /Yes, our spirits are cheerful/ Our tank roars Into the windstorm. 2: With thundering engines /As fast as lightning/ We engage the enemy/ Safe in our tanks/ Far ahead of our comrades /In battle we stand alone/ Yes, stand alone Into enemy territory. 3: If an enemy tank /Appears in our sight /We ram throttles full/ And close with the foe! /We give our lives freely /For the army of our realm/ Yes, the army of our realm/ To die for Germany Is our highest honour. 4: With barriers and tanks/ Our opponent tries to stop us /We laugh at his efforts/ And travel around them/And when the guns threatingly/ Hide in the yellow sand/ Yes, in the yellow sand/ We search for paths /No-one else has found. 5: And if some day /Faithless luck abandons us /And we can't return home/ The deadly bullet strikes/ And fate calls us /Yes, fate calls us /Then our tank is An honourable grave. Source: http://defence.pk/threads/german-ww2-and-pre-ww2-march-songs.146130.
Michael Albert