A true story of World War II

Rating: 10/10 (9 February 2012)

If there was a single movie that showed so much emotion, hardships, pain mentally and physically it was "Come and See". This movie truly showed the world how eastern Europeans fought and what they endured in order to protect their land from the Nazis. Taking place in Belarus, Florya did not show himself as a heroic soldier who fought for freedom and justice. Rather the 13 year old boy showed the audience what it means to be a boy in war torn Belarus. There was no heroism, no dramatic or artificial killing scenes done by Florya. He simply displayed the psychological and emotional pain that he endured as did the many other villagers. The goal of the movie was not to lavishly portray the Russians and fellow eastern Europeans defeating the Germans but rather show the fight that each soldier had on and off the battlefield. Both of my grandfathers served in the Red Army and fought in Belarus. This movie had one of the biggest impact of my life. I felt proud to be a native Russian because this movie was not propaganda movie. This movie showed the fighting spirit in an average boy. If I were to place myself in the same situation, I suspect I would be no different than Florya. Elem Klimov said : "I understood that this would be a very brutal film and that it was unlikely that people would be able to watch it. I told this to my screenplay coauthor, the writer Ales Adamovich. But he replied: "Let them not watch it, then. This is something we must leave after us. As evidence of war, and as a plea for peace." One must never forget the tragedy and the great costs that took defending one's land from invaders. This movie calls for peace because in such a situation a young boy loses his innocence, his childhood in a brutalizing way. We must never forget the horrors. "Come and See" truly gave the world the true perspective of how people fought and the costs that they had to pay to be free. For me personally, this movie will always be engraved in my heart and mind.