That left them open to criticism for lack of historical accuracy, but they claimed in the end credits that they had "re-organized" the chronological order of events to maximize the dramatic story.

Unlike most other World War II epics, Battle of the Bulge contains virtually no portrayals of actual senior Allied leaders, civilian or military.

In December 1944, Military Intelligence officer Lt. Col. Daniel Kiley and his pilot, Joe, are flying a reconnaissance mission over the Ardennes forest that spans easternmost Belgium, northern Luxembourg, and parts of bordering France and Germany.

The officer, Col. Hessler, continues on to his new underground base, where General Kohler briefs him on the top secret plan to pierce American lines and recapture Antwerp.

Hessler's orderly and driver, Conrad, remarks upon the staggering losses Germany has sustained during the war, pointing out to his superior that his new young tank commanders are not the men he had trained and led through the campaigns in Poland, France, and the Crimea.

His superiors, Maj. Gen. Grey and his executive officer, Col. Pritchard, do not listen, believing Germany lacks the resources and manpower to mount an attack, especially in winter, let alone with the Christmas holidays looming immediately ahead.

Rather than proof of German desperation, Kiley believes they are keeping their more experienced men back for an offensive, but is again dismissed by his superiors as a "crackpot".

Lt. Schumacher and his disguised troops capture the only bridge over the Our River that can carry heavy tanks, and Hessler continues toward Amblève, secretly observed by Kiley.

In defense, the Americans flood the road leading to it with gasoline and set it alight with grenades, immolating the German tanks and their crews.

The film was shot on location in the Sierra de Guadarrama mountain range and Madrid, Spain, which bear no resemblance to the rugged, heavily wooded Ardennes of Belgium, Luxembourg and western Germany.

Aside from the initial American encounters with the German offensive, the weather during filming was also at odds with the actual battle, which was fought during waves of heavy snow.

The aviation reconnaissance scenes with Henry Fonda were filmed with one or more Cessna L-19 aircraft, which did not fly until December 1949, instead of the Piper L-4 that was widely used during World War II.

The film creates the false impression that large numbers of American tanks sacrificed themselves against heavy Tiger IIs and, in the process, lured the enemy off course, which caused them to run out of gas.

Although the M24 Chaffee light tanks used in the movie in lieu of the ubiquitous M4 Sherman were introduced during World War II, they were not used in the scale shown in the film but were relatively rare.

He was tried and sentenced to death at the War Crimes Tribunal for his role in the Malmedy massacre, but was released after serving twelve years in prison.

Annakin wrote, "It seemed quite a good narrative account of the German surprise onslaught against the American forces in the Ardennes and how the allied advance was nearly turned at this point, but the dialogue was not remarkable, the character relationships nothing special — it seemed to me just another war picture."

[7] The technical advisor on the film was Maj. Gen. (then Col.) Meinrad von Lauchert, who commanded the German tank division that made the most headway in the actual battle.

For an economical price and with no restrictions,[dubious – discuss] the Spanish army provided an estimated 500 fully-equipped soldiers and 75 tanks and vehicles, some of which were World War II vintage.

The Columbia effort had the cooperation of the Pentagon, which offered to Lazzarino "an unpublished battle history running to thousands of pages," and Eisenhower's assistance as well.

[9] The film would have been shot largely in upper New York State at the Army's Fort Drum, which would have offered authentic winter weather conditions.

Reviewers were impressed by the big-name cast, but they were unafraid to point out historical inaccuracies, as Bosley Crowther raged in his assessment of the film for The New York Times:What is offensive about this picture—and offensive is the word—is the evident distortion of the material and of history to suit the wide Cinerama screen....for instance, it is the removal of the heavy fog that actually made it possible for the Germans to carry on their tank attacks without fear of retaliation from the air....This is a complete distortion of the weather conditions that made the battle what it was....it is a cruel deception to describe the climax of the Battle of the Bulge as a raging of German tanks against Americans across a broad plain in the manner of a Western movie cavalry-and-Indian charge....[the film] will be a likely irritation to those who have some sober, rueful sense of World War II, and also a respectful regard for the memory of the men who fought and died in the real "Bulge.