Once in the Desert

Historical drama. Well, since we have seen the much-praised picture "Sky", then why not continue the theme of a military movie about the Russian military operation in the Syrian Arab Republic, because the occasion is suitable. And the personality of the director is interesting, because today's picture was shot by none other than Andrei Kravchuk himself, who will never wash off the shameful "Viking", but with today's picture he smoothed out the sharp corners of his filmography a little and proved that all is not lost yet, and the "Cinema Fund" for once singled out money (from our taxes) for a good movie, not another garbage. I looked at the picture with some pleasure, and here is my brief opinion - The life and service of a Russian sapper. There were both deserved advantages and unpleasant disadvantages in the picture, which should not be forgotten. And here I finish with the introductory part and get to the point.

So, the pros: 1. Scenario - if we do not take the idiotic moments and outright stupidity in the first half of the picture (which is only needed to reveal the heroic side of Captain Shaberov), then we have a good and even good dramatic story of the life and service of an experienced sapper who serves in Syria and teaches the local military his dangerous craft, while he meets his love. Captain Shaberov is a very difficult and extremely lonely man, who feels good among explosions and constant danger, he is not in a hurry to return to his homeland. In general, his service and life are shown, along the way the viewer finds himself involved in a Civil war, terrorist acts, the struggle for the preservation of historical Palmyra, the internal cuisine of the Russian and Syrian military, difficulties and difficult relationships with the "moderate opposition" and other participants in the conflict. The finale, for me personally, turned out to be even a little unexpected, because I was imbued with the main character (well played by Alexander Robak). This is not the pinnacle of screenwriting, but a strong and dramatic story that catches. And the inscription in the final is very correct "Dedicated to Russian sappers".

2. Romantic line - it is straight as a ruler, but you believe in it, despite its trifling circumstances. Yes, and the ending is very out of line with her, which is what she remembers. There is that "spark" between the characters, without which romance is not romance.

3. Combat episodes - filmed and rated "excellent". Explosions look like real explosions, blood and severed limbs are eerily similar to real ones, blood looks like blood and there is enough of it in general. Even tactics are present in most of these moments. It can be seen that the creators were advised by experienced people who served in Syria at that time. And fights happen here often, which makes me very happy, because I grew up on the action movies of the nineties. I didn't notice the graphics. There is empathy for the Russian and Syrian military, and for civilians, of course, because every loss causes a response in the soul.

4. Music is far from a masterpiece, but within the framework of a military picture it is a good option. Her motives were clearly spied on by her overseas colleagues, but it turned out all the same well.

So, the cons: 1. Sound - the first number is a bad sound editing (which I know firsthand), because Alexander Robak speaks very softly and a third of the words are simply indecipherable, which is quite infuriating, because he is a sapper and tells the specifics of his craft. In addition, some other characters also speak very quietly. Your sound engineer is personally reprimanded and the editor Alexander Koshelev is also personally reprimanded, well, and the director Kravchuk for not controlling this.

2. Shaberov's behavior - he always runs into trouble, behaves like a lone wolf who does not care about orders, but because of this disregard, his colleagues, or Syrian allies, or even civilians may die. Thank God that he is so stupid only in the first half of the picture, and then, having already "fired up", he acts wisely and prudently.

3. Idiotic moments - this concerns both the elementary oblivion of the rules of tactics and banal logic. All this is present to a greater extent only in the first half of the picture, but it is still very annoying.

A little about the main characters: 1. Captain Dmitry Shaberov, played by Alexander Robak, is an experienced sapper who managed to survive more than one mistake, but who is not very lucky, because death wanders next to him. Very strained relations with the family, which causes sympathy. A sincere and honest officer, a kind of "Ivan the fool", who is always happy and for whom you will fight to the last drop of blood, and he will do the same for a friend. Alexander Robak was very convincing in this role and finally he starred in a good movie, and not in another domestic slop. Well done Alexander!

2. Captain Kostya Zhilin, played by Pavel Chinarev, is a newly arrived sapper, to whom Dmitry falls into subordination. Chyna tries to restrain herself here (but it doesn't really work out). I noticed him back in Devyataev, where his "hero" was very, very annoying. Rank! Will you learn to control your facial expressions? And control emotions? You're an actor, not a student of the mime school. What they teach you there. In general, not very convincing, although the efforts are visible.

This picture in the Russian box office collected pennies, and when it began, it was quickly turned down (which is surprising, because the picture is military-patriotic). And as a result, it failed miserably at the box office, which is sad, because it is not the best example of modern military-patriotic cinema (but better than "Sky"), but not bad either. Look at this picture, just look, rate it, write a review, it deserves it, unlike any Batman or Mobius.

As a result, we have a good historical drama about Russian sappers in Syria, with a good script, good music, excellent combat episodes, and even with the acting present.

My rating is 8 out of 10 and my recommendation for viewing!