A Work Of Fiction, Not Of Fact

Contrary to claims that this movie is historically accurate, it really is not.

The movie purports to tell the true verified story of World War II German POW Clemens Forrell's three year trek to freedom from the furthest eastern end of Siberia all of the way to Iran. Much of the drama of the tale derives from the belief that it actually happened.

Alas, seemingly fatal questions have been raised regarding the veracity of the story. Please refer to the Wikipedia article on Cornelius Rost (the real name of the Clemens Forrell):

"Comprehensive researches, condensed in 2010 into a three-hour radio feature by radio journalist Arthur Dittlmann for the Bayerischer Rundfunk (Bavarian Broadcasting Company), left serious doubts about the authenticity of the events told in Rost's original story. For example, no prisoner of war camp existed at Cape Dezhnev in the Far East of Siberia at the time claimed in the book; Rost was not a Wehrmacht officer as depicted in the story; the German Red Cross, with headquarters in Munich, never received any inquiry about his whereabouts, which is unusual for a ten-year imprisonment; and Rost had been released from a Russian prisoner of war camp on 28 October 1947, about two years before his alleged escape in 1949-1952, which he therefore could not have accomplished."

In short, the movie is a work of fiction, not fact.