Storytelling is a lightning rod for controversy.
Within the stories we tell, there is always a storyteller who is fueled by their own personal perspectives and views. Every film, book, and news story present a window into their world and invites us to engage it. In these moments, our guards go down and our ears perk up. We listen. Sometimes, it reflects our own ideas. Other times, it challenges us.
This, of course, can get messy. Words like ‘propaganda’ are thrown around to suggest that a particular piece of media is meant to corrupt people. And, frankly, it can be true. We’ve seen it. (‘Fake news’, anyone?) But, sometimes, films come along that show us another side of a struggle that we’re passionate about in a way that’s meant to provide context, even if it’s a painful topic.
Russians at War is one of those films.
Directed by Anastasia Trofimova, the new documentary Russians at War takes the viewer behind enemy lines and into the lives of Russian soldiers in the midst of their unjust war on Ukraine. Using entirely first-person footage, Trofimova focuses the camera on men and women who find themselves leading the battle yet seem to grow increasingly lost as the conflict continues. With each casualty and confusing command, the viewer witnesses the ways that war steals not only from those affected by the carnage but also from those responsible for it.
First off, let me point out that, as editor of ScreenFish, support of a film such as this is not meant in to take any political sides. In no way do I (or, by extension, our site) mean to use our platform to take position on a conflict that is destroying lives overseas. And the last week has shown us that there are many people who believe that this particular film is attempting to do that very thing. I fully believe that they have the right to express themselves and have their voices be heard. (Although, personally, I do hope that they’ve seen the film before they make any particular accusations against it). As a result of their protests, Russians at War was initially pulled from the TIFF schedule as a sign of support and has since been rescheduled to play on the 17th.
Though, for the purposes of this review, I want to stick to the film itself. And Russians at War is a stunning and shocking piece of cinema. By stepping behind enemy lines, Trofimova offers some of the most graphic 1st-person war footage that we’ve seen in some time. That’s not to say it’s particularly gory. Instead, Russiansshows the violence of gunfire and the realities of carnage. Soldiers mishandle explosives, cannons are fired without permission and violence is everywhere. We see lives that are ruined, simply by the realities of war.
But what’s most fascinating about this particular film is the way that it reveals the humanity of its soldiers. (And, this is likely where the controversy lies.) By turning the camera upon the Russian soldiers, Trofimova gives an unfettered look at those who have stepped into the war with the Ukraine.
But rather than glorify them (or their destruction), Russians reveals a group of men and women who wish they weren’t there in the first place. To these soldiers, the war has very little meaning. For many, it’s simply a way to earn some money. Others yearn to return home but can’t, out of fear from what could happen to their families. And some are just confused about the whole thing entirely. (For example, one soldier believes they’re in the war to exterminate Nazis…) But, what’s most clear is that no one seems to be involved because of any particular issues with the Ukraine, even those who claim to be patriotic.
In this way, Trofimova’s film seeks to highlight the humanity of its subjects. Despite claims by some that it’s meant to further an agenda, instead she seeks to pull back the curtain on the very real people embroiled in the conflict itself. In doing so, she keeps the film feeling small, even if it’s sitting in the midst of a major global conflict. While some will see that as an attempt to glorify the Russian agenda in Ukraine, I, personally, don’t believe that that’s Trofimova’s point. She seems to genuinely want to know what these soldiers are fighting for and, frankly, most of them don’t really know either. As a result, Russians at War feels like an attempt to point the finger at the pointlessness of war itself, highlighting the toll it takes on the both the world and the soul.
There’s no question that this sort of conversation will undoubtedly draw ire from those whose lives have been deeply affected by the devastation of an unjust war in the Ukraine. After all, when one’s life has been traumatized by war, it leaves irrevocable scars. And, for the record, I believe that those people have a right to be heard. But, maybe, Trofimova’s film isn’t the film that people believe it to be. She never makes these soldiers heroes but neither does she entirely demonize them. In Russians at War, she simply shows them as real people, most of whom who wish they weren’t there in the first place.
Russians at War has been announced to play at the TIFF Bell Lightbox on Tuesday, September 17, 2024.
