Come And See (1985) DVD

Elem Klimov's powerful, mesmerising and dynamic award winning feature has been deservedly hailed as one of the greatest war films ever produced.

Set in Soviet Belarus during the Second World War, the story follows Florya, a newly enlisted and innocent partisan, as he staggers dazed and petrified through the merciless horror of the struggle against a cruel German aggressor. Essentially the film is a rite of passage and Florya's face physically ages during the progression of the film as he is subjected to ever increasing brutal warfare and maniacal ethnic cleansing, routinely committed by the German forces.

The film's title is derived from the Book of Revelation and its call for witnesses to 'come and see' the carnage and devastation wrought by the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. The imagery created by Klimov is stunning and the battle scenes frighteningly realistic; the director actually used real ammunition during filming for maximum authenticity. Such brutality shocks to the core and the director's careful attention to style and detail make it all too believable whilst leaving the audience stunned and bewildered to the very last.