World War II · Film · 1969
The Battle of Neretva
Bitka na Neretvi
Encircled by German, Italian and Chetnik forces in the mountains of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Tito's Partisans must get thousands of wounded and typhus-stricken comrades across the Neretva river.
Where it happened
Follow the story across 2 places.
Stop 1: Prozor, Herzegovina
The Partisans storm the Italian-held town of Prozor, and an Italian officer begins to doubt the war he is fighting.
Stop 2: Neretva bridge at Jablanica
Key location
Hemmed in on all sides, the Partisans blow up the bridge they need, bewildering the Germans, and fight to get the wounded across.
What really happened
In January 1943 the Axis launched Case White, known in Yugoslavia as the Fourth Enemy Offensive, to destroy Tito's Partisans in western Bosnia. The Partisans broke south toward the Neretva, taking Prozor from its Italian garrison in February, while carrying a hospital column of about 4,000 wounded and sick.
Trapped against the river, Tito ordered the bridges at Jablanica destroyed to convince the Germans he was heading north, then turned, crossed on a makeshift bridge and defeated the Chetniks on the far bank in March 1943. The film, Yugoslavia's most expensive production, mixed international stars with Partisan legend and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film; the bridge it blew up for the cameras still lies in the river as a memorial.
Where to watch
Checking streaming services…
Full details
- Original title
- Bitka na Neretvi
- Directed by
- Veljko Bulajić
- Countries
- Serbia, Italy, Germany, United States
- Languages
- Serbian (Latin), German, Italian, English
- Released
- 1969
- Period
- –
- Theaters of war
- Mediterranean & Africa
- Themes
- Combat
- Resistance
- True story
