In this well-photographed and sometimes confusing wartime drama, an Austrian village experiences the tragedy of war on several different levels. Within one family, the younger son is jealous of the praise his father gives to a Polish POW who is working for them under very difficult conditions. Within the village as a whole, the French, Polish, and Russian POWs are kept under guard by Nazi soldiers, creating a tense situation all around. But more importantly, the village has conspired to hide an Austrian deserter in a cave up in the mountains. This act of rebellion on the part of the deserter and the village hangs in a precarious balance that could be upset by a single traitorous comment to the Gestapo.

Throughout the past century, dictators held Europe in an iron grip. Yet, despite their unquestioned control, paranoia and distrust corrupted their minds. In order to secure their authoritarian rule, numerous bunkers, palaces, and hideouts sprung up around Europe. From Stalin’s secret underground super bunkers in Moscow to Hitler’s clandestine Riese headquarters to Ceausescu’s P...