Very worthwhile, though not without annoyances

Rating: 8/10 (2 February 2005)

Overall, I enjoyed (if that is the word) "Idi i smotri." The imagery is powerful, the scenery is magnificent, the military hardware is an anorak's dream, the overall plot is gripping and the climactic points in the action are nothing short of terrifying. In depicting the gruesomeness of war, this film pulls no punches whatsoever, and from that it derives a lot of its power. Even if you've seen "Schindler's List," "Saving Private Ryan," etc., this film will still shock you. The characters' motivations and thought processes are often somewhat incomprehensible, but given the situations in which they find themselves, this is understandable. However, the film is significantly longer than it needs to be, mostly because a great many scenes drag on well past the point of annoyance. Watching this film on DVD, I was mercifully able to fast forward through segments where nothing would happen for minutes at a time. Another point that niggles is the behavior of the Germans. Their almost casual brutality, even towards the Byelorussian police and militia collaborating with them, is perfectly credible. But there is a point in the film prior to which the Germans' behavior is cold and methodical ("grÃ¼ndlich"). Then, from one moment to the next (at the start of chapter 11 on the DVD), all discipline goes out the window and they start behaving as if they're at Club Med instead of in territory crawling with hostile partisans. This is rather jarring, and detracts somewhat from the film's credibility. All told, though, I thoroughly recommend this film, albeit it primarily to war movie buffs.