The North Star (1943 film)

The North Star (also known as Armored Attack in the US) is a 1943 pro-resistance war film starring Anne Baxter, Dana Andrews, Walter Huston, Walter Brennan and Erich von Stroheim It was produced by Samuel Goldwyn Productions and distributed by RKO Radio Pictures. It was directed by Lewis Milestone, written by Lillian Hellman and featured production design by William Cameron Menzies. The music was written by Aaron Copland, the lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and the cinematography by James Wong Howe. The film also marked the debut of Farley Granger.

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The North Star
Theatrical poster
Directed by	Lewis Milestone
Written by	Lillian Hellman (story and screenplay)
Produced by	Samuel Goldwyn William Cameron Menzies
Starring	Anne Baxter Dana Andrews Walter Huston Walter Brennan Ann Harding Jane Withers Farley Granger Erich von Stroheim
Cinematography	James Wong Howe
Edited by	Daniel Mandell
Music by	Aaron Copland
Production company	Samuel Goldwyn Productions
Distributed by	RKO Radio Pictures
Release date	November 4, 1943 (1943-11-04)
Running time	106 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$2.8 million (US rentals)[1]

The film is about the resistance of Ukrainian villagers, through guerrilla tactics, against the German invaders of the Ukrainian SSR. The film was unashamed pro-Soviet propaganda at the height of the war.[2]

In the 1950s, it was criticized for this reason and it was re-cut to remove the idealized portrayal of Soviet collective farms at the beginning and to include references to the Hungarian Uprising of 1956.[2] The film was then retitled Armored Attack and released to American theatres, where it begins with the arrival of the Germans in the town and continues through the scenes of the uprising, with a narration tacked on praising the Hungarian Uprising of 1956.