• The film’s focus is clear from the beginning. It’s a “war” film by description but the only real battle is during the opening credits and the action isn’t the focus—sets the tone. The film is more considered with the other atrocities of war and the human condition.
  • The film is an all-timer in terms of winter/cold films. It feels cold. You can see everyone’s breath. This was clearly not shot indoors or on some safe Hollywood backlot
  • The snow dominates the mise-en-scene—quite beautiful—several total whiteouts
  • Heavy and effective use of close-ups by Shepito
  • There’s a small little bad form fake dream surrealism sequence death about 45 minutes in. They go back to it at the end but they should set this sort of narrative structure up earlier—it’s quite jarring when it first hits you so late in the film
  • The narrative is sprawling. Two desperate men cut off from their unit just rambling
  • A medication on torture and betrayal
  • Genre of neo-realism—I see comparisons with the brutality and rawness of open city—there’s a biblical sacrificial (Judas mentioned in text) subtext parable here
  • Wonderful scene of rising music as it crescendos during the hanging
  • Strong performance by Boris Plotnikov—much of the film is a close up on his face and feeds off his intensity
  • Recommend after one viewing- not quite on that HR/R top 10 border