Come and See Movie Review
Horrifying, heart wrenching, sobering, and memorable are a few words that come to mind when thinking about this movie. Most film scholars believe that Russian filmmakers invented what we now think of as "movies" in their standard form as the ultimate art in modern culture. They were pioneers in editing, linear narrative, and creating cinematic pieces of art. Despite it's painful subject, Come and See is one of the pinnacles of Russian cinema. It is a masterpiece.
Russian Filmmaker Elem Klimov created a movie out of is own personal experience in war. As a young man he was evacuated from Stalingrad during World War 2, and that experience obviously had a strong influence on the way he personalized 'Come and See'. Because at it's heart Come and See is a movie about a young boy forever changed by the horrors of War. There’s no typical Hollywood romanticism here but instead an honest look at depravity, suffering, violence.
The young boy we follow is Florya, masterfully acted by Alesky Kravchenko, who demonstrates a remarkable range of emotion. The narrative begins with him digging up a gun and eager to join the soviet army. But his journey soon turns grim, as he encounters the pain and suffering of war, causing him to lose touch with himself and with reality.
While the movie depicts a nightmare story, the cinematography is simply amazing. There's so many moments you're captivated by the beauty of a shot. Whether it’s the foggy Russian fields, or the natural light filtering in through a window or the war torn face of a Russian, it’s simply captivating! It reminded me much of the impact The Revenant had with its majestic beauty. So yes, the Cinematography is stunning, both in beauty and ambition. But more importantly it sends a message. It always compliments the story, enhancing it, rather than trying to embellish it. It allows the viewer to be dropped right into the action and to experience the movie in a unique way. Sometimes we follow the action running behind the characters. Other times we stay still for long cuts. The camera work holds up even to this day.
Much of the time the character's look right into the lens, which is striking and unnerving. It forces the viewer to Come and See. There are several shots where Florya stares in the camera at you the viewer. You look into his eyes and he looks into yours. As the movie movies forward these stares become more emotional, more insane, more bizarre, and more powerful. They climax in a powerful ending that makes a statement about the atrocities of war.
Come and See shows the power of cinema to move an audience. It shows the power of cinema to build a sort of consciousness for the viewer. It shows how cinema can move us emotionally and motivate us. This movie is an essential piece of film. It shows the ugly side of human nature and the horrors human beings are capable of. It will move you to pity, anger, tears, and force you to look into the eyes of the suffering. Come and See is a mirror into ourselves and a lens into the ugliness that emerges from this dark world.
As I watched I couldn't help but think of the Biblical truth that sin is pervasive and destructive and deadly and ugly. It also made me think of the book of Lamentations. How Jeremiah the prophet watched Jerusalem burned down by the Babylonians. He watched the horrors of his people murdered and abused. What does Lamentations show us about God and about suffering?
What Lamentations does is it doesn’t deny the pain, the evil, the destructiveness of sin in this dark world. Lamentations describes all the horrors of war, first hand and says its terrible but it also fixes its eyes on God and says one day God will right every wrong. He will bring justice, He will bring peace, He is faithful. I can only look at the horrors of war and turn to God for hope and help.