READ THIS: Beautifully Harrowing: Why You Must Bear Witness to “COME & SEE”
COME & SEE is considered the most devastating anti-war film ever made. Released in the later years of the artistically liberating time of Glasnost, Soviet Union director Elem Klimov tells the story of a Belarusian village being invaded by Hitler’s German troops in 1943. Young Flyora decides to join the Soviet army to defend his village with dreams of heroism and glamor. Instead, Flyora witnesses the intense cruelty and carnage of war as he invariably loses his innocence and comes to grips with the harshness of life.
In anticipation of our upcoming presentation of the newly restored COME & SEE, we invite you to read the critical reactions to the film and explore its lasting legacy. Screenings begin this Saturday, March 7, 4PM, at the AFS Cinema. Full schedule is here.
Roger Ebert:
“It’s said that you can’t make an effective anti-war film because war by its nature is exciting, and the end of the film belongs to the survivors. No one would ever make the mistake of saying that about Elem Klimov’s “Come and See.” It’s not everyday that you get this vote of confidence from Roger Ebert. Read more >>
The AV Club
“Come and See paints a real historical event as an expressionist nightmare, full of abstract horrors and heightened surrealism.” AV Club’s review whole heartedly recommends this film for a bone-chilling time at the cinema. Read more >>
The New York Times:
“Powerful material, powerfully rendered by the director and co-writer Elem Klimov…” “Scene for scene, Mr. Klimov proves a master of a sort of unreal realism that seeks to get at events terrible beyond comprehension.” The New York Times knew COME & SEE was more than just a film. It was the beginning of the end for the Iron Curtain. Read more >>
The Calvert Journal on COME & SEE’s Legacy
“In the 30 years since Come and See‘s release, although its influence has been great, none of the more recent films have been able to realise the original’s emotional acuity.” Calvert Journal tells the readers how it is: there will never be another COME & SEE. Read the full article >>
ELEM KLIMOV ON MAKING “COME & SEE”
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VN9_r1NEnGM)
COME & SEE director Elem Klimov recounts the nightmarish process of getting his film through the Soviet censors, and more.
