Cross of Iron backdrop
DRAMA . 1977 . 2h 12m . English . 7.1/10

Cross of Iron_

"On the Eastern front in 1943, the German soldiers no longer had any ideals. They were not fighting for the Party—but for their lives!"

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.

Starring James Coburn, Maximilian Schell, James Mason
Box Office $1.5M
7.1/10
Rating
$1.5M
Box Office
2h 12m
Runtime
1977
Year
FLOP
-75% ROI
Profitability
Updated Feb 16, 2026
Cross of Iron poster
On the Eastern front in 1943, the German soldiers no longer had any ideals. They were not fighting for the Party—but for their lives!

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.

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DROPTHE_ GOSSIP

Box office
Cross of Iron earned $1.5M against a $6.0M budget.
Cast
James Coburn stars as Unteroffizier / Feldwebel Rolf Steiner in Cross of Iron.
James Coburn →
Year context
Cross of Iron was released 49 years ago in 1977.
Cross of Iron is a Drama, Action, History film with a runtime of 2h 12m.

CAST (20)

James Coburn
James Coburn
Unteroffizier / Feldwebel Rolf Steiner
Maximilian Schell
Maximilian Schell
Hauptmann Stransky
James Mason
James Mason
Oberst Brandt
David Warner
David Warner
Hauptmann Kiesel
Klaus Löwitsch
Klaus Löwitsch
Unteroffizier Krüger
Vadim Glowna
Vadim Glowna
Gefreiter Kern
Roger Fritz
Roger Fritz
Leutnant Treibig
Dieter Schidor
Dieter Schidor
Anselm
Burkhard Driest
Burkhard Driest
Schütze Maag
Fred Stillkrauth
Fred Stillkrauth
Unteroffizier Schnurrbart
MN
Michael Nowka
Dietz
Véronique Vendell
Véronique Vendell
Marga
Arthur Brauss
Arthur Brauss
Zoll
Senta Berger
Senta Berger
Eva
Demeter Bitenc
Demeter Bitenc
Hauptmann Pucher (uncredited)
Igor Galo
Igor Galo
Leutnant Meyer (uncredited)
KH
Katherine Haber
Nurse Sadie Finkelstein (uncredited)
WC
Wolf C. Hartwig
Hartwig (uncredited)
WH
Wolfgang Hess
Schütze Maag (voice) (uncredited)
SM
Sweeney MacArthur
Boy Soldier (uncredited)

BOX OFFICE

$6.0M
Budget
$1.5M
Revenue
-75%
ROI
FLOP
Verdict

STUDIOS (4)

Rapid Film EMI Films Terra-Filmkunst Alex Winitsky / Arlene Sellers Productions

DETAILS

Release
Status
Released
Runtime
132 min (2h 12m)
Language
English
Rating
7.1/10 (460 votes)
Popularity
2
Budget
$6,000,000
Box Office
$1,509,000
Profit
$-4,491,000

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is Cross of Iron 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.
How long is Cross of Iron?
Cross of Iron has a runtime of 132 minutes (2h 12m).
Who stars in Cross of Iron?
The cast of Cross of Iron includes James Coburn, Maximilian Schell, James Mason, David Warner, Klaus Löwitsch.
How much did Cross of Iron make at the box office?
Cross of Iron earned $1,509,000 worldwide at the box office. The production budget was $6,000,000.
What is the rating of Cross of Iron?
Cross of Iron has a rating of 7.1 out of 10 based on 460 votes on TMDB.

GENRES (4)

Drama Action History War
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