(footsteps clattering)
(man panting) (man shouting) - [Soldier] Keep moving. - [Soldier] Move forward, forward now. - Commander. - Keep moving forward. - The Germans have taken Lokhvytsia. The ring is complete. - What about Kiev, Commander? - We have nowhere to retreat to. - Everyone to your posts. - Weapons ready for battle! - [Soldier] Ready for battle.
- Right now. - Move it.
- [Soldier] Prepare to fight. - [Soldier] Quick, move. Stage defense. Keep your head down! (suspenseful music) (engine roaring) - Air strike. (gun firing) (bomb firing)
(people screaming) - [Soldier] Follow me. (bomb exploding) - Keep your head down. - [Soldier] Cover in between. (soldier shouting) (bomb explodes)
(soldier gasps) - Oh, God, commander. Commander. (bombs exploding) (soldiers shouting) (soldier panting)
(metal clanging) (bomb explodes)
(air whooshing) (wolves howling) (cock crowing) (suspenseful music) (air whooshing)
(dog barking) - Boys, grab this fellow
around me. He is injured. Gently.
- Careful. Careful. - I think he's one of yours guys. - Lieutenant Berenshtein, 3rd Company. - Melnichenko, also a lieutenant. Except our company no longer exists. - Not just yours. - There's nothing left
of our defense forces. Father, we're going to leave tonight. We have to find partisans
before the snow piles up. - Do whatever you like, but
you're going to get caught. - Which is why we can't stay.
They'll come, sooner or later. - What about him? - Hold on. Just hold on. This won't take very long. Pour it. That's it. Quiet. Quiet. That's it. (Berenshtein screams) We got it. We got it. (engine roaring)
(man shouting) (door creaking) - You brought me tea.
- Mm-hmm. - Thank you. And what is your name?
(gun firing) (dogs barking)
(people chattering) - Stop. This guy. Is this the man you talked
about. Is that the jew? We got you.
(gun firing) (dog barking) - Move. (engine roaring)
(woman crying) (door bangs)
(man panting) - Are you hiding a soldier? - One came by this morning. He didn't stay and he is long gone. - Well, your neighbor told
me the same damn thing. And I even believed him. But to be sure, our men
even searched his cabin. You know what happen if I find him? - Yes, that's why I turned him away. - Who is that? - My grandchild. - What's your name, little girl? - Vera. - Be quiet. I think your grandfather
is hiding a soldier here. - Why don't you show me where? - [Soldier] There is no one here. - [Soldier] He is right,
there's no one here, let's go. - Be careful, Piotr.
She's only a little girl. Too young to die. - Just go across the
village, all the way across. Enter the forest by the stables. When you reach the river, cross it and keep following the flow. Soon after, you'll then
reach a pine grove, and that's where Smelansky forest begins. This is bread, you'll need it. I had a son who was about your size. Take it. - Thank you!
- It's okay. - Thank you, Father. (wolves howling) - Stop! Stop! Stop, you swine! (gun firing) After him! (gun firing) Stop! (gun firing) Dammit. (man panting)
(crow cowing) (fire rattling) (woman humming) - He's alive. (horse galloping) - My name is Dubovoy. I'm the battalion commander. Lieutenant Dorofeyev commands
the intelligence unit. You'll meet the others later on. But right now, I want you to
state your name and profession, if you have one, proceed. Answer to your name. - Malkin.
- Malkin, Semyon. I'm a painter from Cherkasy. They killed my family, that's
why I have come to you. - Painter? Can you do
anything that will be useful? - Aramian!
- Surkis Aramian. Sergeant in the armored division. I managed to get separated
from my unit near Konotop. - Vasiliev.
- Vasiliev, Vladimir. 223rd artillery regiment
with the 5th army. - Where were you separated from them? - Near Orzhica, Commander. - Zarenko. - Second naval lieutenant Zarenko. I was separated from my unit near Kiev. - Kim. - Look, Comrade Commander - The boy wants to join us to fight. But we don't know where he's from, or who his parents are.. - I don't have no parents. I'm all alone. - Joining a partisan camp
is an act of bravery.. But you must earn the right to be called a true partisan. Above all remember this, you are not in a wild group, you are subject to orders
by the Headquarters of Ukrainian Front. We are all soldiers of the Red Army, By that I mean, you mus follow
all the rules and duties As instructed. Military duties and rules apply to you just as they apply to every armored corps, navy or infantry soldier. There are, however, a few differences. Unlike the soldiers at the
front, you will get no days off and no leaves. You will have no hospital. You will have to make
do with our own doctor, Sergei Ivanovich. There's just one problem. Sergei Ivanovich has no medicine. Therefore, it is sometimes
better to die than to be injured. And death here waits around every corner. (gun firing) - Take my weapon. - We have but one main mission to blow up Nazi freight trains, preferably those carrying
tanks or ammunition. But even if the only
thing in them are Nazis, that's good too. Get those bastards off the damn tracks! (suspenseful music) (train honking) Ready. Fire!
(gun firing) Fire! A partisan is a master of the forest. To become a master you
must know every bush, every standing tree, every path. The forest will become your home. - Where should we go, sir? - Go right, towards Smela. And you must learn to protect your home from unwelcome guests! Partisans! Take cover! (fire rattling) - Onion, vitamins. Pass the cup. Well, to victory! - [All] To victory! - Don't I have better things to do than poison myself with smoke? Piss off. - Oh, wow, she speaks. - Hey, Asambekov. Did you decide to poison the girl? - Poison a girl like that? Never. So, after the war ends, you
should come with me to Tashkent. - Keep dreaming. - Our watermelons are this big! - Why are you rubbing it in? Why bring up watermelons? - Why not? Let me dream. - I bet Tashkent is warm
With plenty of food. I wish I was there now. - There's nothing for us to do there. We're here fight the Nazis
and Tashkent is where the Jews are hiding. That's right. - Commander! - Vasiliev. - -May I speak with you? - Sit down. - My commander, I wish
to report to headquarters my real name, Leonid Berenshtein. My mother should know I'm alive. Here at camp I'd rather remain Vasiliev, with your permission. - Three freight trains, Vasiliev. Three freight trains this week, and one of them is yours. Do you think it matters what the person blowing them up is called, or what his nationality is? - I think it would be better this way. Some of the guys already
know me as Volodya. - Whatever you say, It's your decision. - The tree is crying. - Come, it's time to go. - Well, what's going on? - Comrade Dubovoy, the
bonfires are ready to be lit. - Damnit, where are they?
The sun is already up. - They should have been here. - It would be better if they didn't come. We'll be caught along with them. - [Soldier] Incoming
plane! Our guys are in it - Light the bonfires
and be quick about it. (airplane engine roaring) - Goddamit, do you have an ass for a head? What took you so long? And why so many parachutes? We were waiting for a single
fighter and some cargo. Who's in charge here? - May I presume you are Comrade Dubovoy. I was warned about you. - This area is swarming
with German troops. They're literally hunting
us, it's very dangerous here during the day. - But we aren't Germans, right? So you should advise him to be careful when talking to a party commissar. Who are you, please? - Vasiliev, Vladimir, Commander
of the intelligence unit. - You seem young for a commander. - Captain, I'm major Goryachiy. Here to establish new
unit in Pozharsky's name. - Is that all? Is that it? Where's the cargo? Where's the food? Where are the weapons for my men? What are you gonna do for
me without those things? - The operation to cross the Dnieper is scheduled to begin soon. The Red Army is preparing
to liberate western Ukraine. In point of that, our joint
mission is to help the army make if safely across the river. We're talking about thousands
of soldiers and equipment. That's why, from this
moment on, we work together. And you, Comrade Dubovoy, will have to share your men with me. Here are the full details at Headquarters. Just read this. - Kabachenko?
- Here. - Take Fomenko and Smirnov and head to the camp through the grove. - Yes, sir! You will escort Comrade
Goryachiy and his friends. The rest, come with me. We'll go via the river. That's all. Move it out. (birds chirping) - Atleast we have a beautiful day, don't you agree, Comrade Dubovoy? Don't you want to sing. - Stop! My tooth ache. - Let me take a look. I studied dentistry for a year before they took us to the front. Maybe, oh, we need to pull it out. - I'll pull yours out! - What's with you? (dogs barking)
(people shouting) - Silence, everyone. Ready weapons. - Silence. Ready weapons! (dog barking)
(people screaming) - Penal battalions. No less than a hundred men
and those damned collaborators are with them. (people shouting)
(people screaming) - Inside, everyone! Faster, faster. - Don't shoot. Put the gun down. - Those villagers have always helped us. - That's why the Nazis came. - We'll all die here. We won't even make it across the river. - There are children there. - There were children. (people screaming)
(door banging) - Mama! - Let go! Let go! - Quiet. Quiet. There's nothing we can do. There's nothing we can do. There's nothing we can do. - Let me go. - There's nothing we can do. There's nothing we can do. There's nothing we can do. There's nothing we can do. There's nothing we can do. There's nothing we can do. (woman humming) - Comrade Commander,
they're waiting for you. - We've received orders
from the Headquarters of the 4th Ukrainian Front. The Red Army plans to cross
the Dnieper south of Cherkasy. From here to here. Our mission is to gather intelligence about German fortifications
on the right bank in order for us to be able
to identify a weak spot. The Dnieper is a wide river,
and without a bridgehead the crossing will become a
massacre, as you can imagine. We're talking about thousands of soldiers and military vehicles. - But that's impossible! - The orders is to gather intelligence. - Where's the location of
the largest German force in the area? - Comrade Vasiliev,
please show us on the map where we are in relation
to the burned village. Comrade Vasiliev? - We're here. We're about 120 miles from the Dnieper. If the unit gets close, - even
if we move in small groups, the Germans will spot us immediately. They can't perfectly fortify
the entire 120-mile bank, there must be a weak
spot, but it isn't there. - What do you mean, not there? - We need to find an
engineering battalion. That's where we'll find a
map of the fortifications. But probably not along the bank. It's more likely to be on the rear. - Our mission is of the highest order, and you're suggesting we
look for an imaginary map that infact may not even exist. - Infiltration is the only solution. It's a dangerous plan,
but it'll give us a chance to keep our people safe
and carry out the mission. - Explain yourself. - So does Zhulkovsky. We'll send them to the
German rear as backup. In order to do this we'll keep low profile and stay inside the camp, Until we fully win it. - What are you proposing? They simply walk into German headquarters, say hello and take the map and walk out? - Exactly, Comrade Commissar. - I have a feeling Comrade Vasiliev is trying to send his
men to certain death. Besides, Commander, I've
learned there's a food shortage in the battalion. So we have to send people
into the village for food. A low profile is- - We can't go to the village, there are a lot of secret
German agents there. If we're caught, we'll fail the mission. - Your men have nothing to eat right now. - The men will manage it. Zarenko, you will cover us from here. You go around the house. (both groaning) (door bangs)
(people screaming) - So, Shataylo, out of luck again. You searched for a soldier
in Afanasyevich's house? remember? I can see in your eyes that you remember. - I wish I'd found him. Why are you here? To loot the village? Take the food and get out. - There are rumors the Germans have posted an engineering battalion in your region. We need to know where they
are and how many they are. - I'm not going to help you, scum. - So you only collaborate
with animals, you bastard? Do you know what your new
friends did to the village? You were there. - Fuck you, forest rat. - No, please, don't shoot Papa! Don't kill him, please! No, no Please, you don't need to. Don't kill him, please! Don't kill him, please! Please, no! Don't kill papa, don't do it, please. - What's up, Commander? Volodya, are you alright? - Have him the describe
the building's layout. Tell it to Malkin, so he can draw it. I'll hang him in the forest. - As you say. - Tell me, when will be
allowed to go to the village for food? - No sooner than five days. - How will we survive? Eat weeds, or what? - Listen, you can eat weeds if you like. Or live on your prayers
like your friend Imas does. - Screw you, and your unfunny jokes. - Listen, ugly, do you want
to get yourself killed? - What does it matter where I die? - Gentlemen, stop it, be
respectful of each other. We already have someone to fight. Have you forgotten? You have to be an example
to the young ones. Zarenko, you should go read a book. - Hey you know, they say
there's a village here where you can get food. - In you dream on. There's
your meal is cooking. They are idiots. - What else can we do? - We're all going to die here. But I have an idea. Get two new recruits and
you all be ready at sunrise. - What's up? - I don't like this. - It's too damn quiet. Smells like Nazis. - Let's finish up as quickly
as possible and head back. You got it?
- Alright? I'll check the other side in the meantime. (child screaming) (door bangs) - Wow, so many potatoes. I guess we can all eat now. - She was found with fascist posters. The bitch was mingling with the Nazis. Lower your rifle, come on. (suspenseful music) - By orders of Comrade Stalin, we held on to our weapons,
we did not surrender to the enemy. Despite the shortage
in food and ammunition, the soldiers' spirit is strong
and their faith in victory remains unshakable. - Dismissed. - Do you know what your
soldiers did in the village? Do you think we can
loot and rape the women? You're a commissar, dammit. - Speak on, look what
they found at her place. - Who gave the order without my knowledge? - Okay, my soldiers screwed
up, but I'll handle it. They'll pay for this. - They'll pay? They don't have enough to pay anything - Look how they live. - There's no bread, people
cover themselves with whatever they find, the German noose
grows tighter and tighter, and you're making it worse. Listen to me- - If I listened to everyone, we'd have already eaten each other. We're not at the front, Zhilin! - We're at the enemy's rear! - At least the soldiers at the
front have something to eat and a bed, and the occasional leave. While we live like hunted animals. - Yeah we have no food and no leave but we will
make no concessions. Let them hunt us as much as they want, but my soldiers will not become animals. - They are all your soldiers. - Mine, and I have over 100 of them. Without proper discipline, we will not survive a month here. So decide who will be in the firing squad. - There was a major with us. He was a good guy, but he had a problem. He was too honest. Do you know what happened to him? We should reeducate them, not kill them. Otherwise someone, somewhere might be very unhappy about
it, Comrade Berenshtein. - That's enough, Zhilin. Tomorrow morning, you do it yourself. Not just Asambekov, but
also anyone who was there and said nothing and I'll stand behind you and believe me, if you make one wrong move I'll send you to the afterlife
with them, you got it? (soldier singing in foreign language) - Wait, I didn't do anything - I order you to carry out the sentence. - Get ready. Aim. And fire!
(gun firing) (upbeat music) - With Kiev liberated and
the Dnieper river behind us, I'm sure the Germans' days on
Ukrainian soil are numbered. So, friends, let's simply
drink to this great victory! All of you, with no exceptions,
have contributed greatly. Hurrah!
- [All] Hurrah! - Vasiliev, right? - Yes, I am Captain. - Well done, Vasiliev! You've all done so much. Let's drink to you, to the partisans. To Svidivok, Gapsino, the Dnieper River. To your brave operations we toast. - You know us well, comrade Captain. - Forgive me, I forgot
to introduce myself. Khoroshilov, head of the
Commendation Department, you get it? (laughs) Of course I know your battalion. I sign off on all your medals you get. - Tell me, by the way, who's
that Jew you've got with you? Berenshtein. - Do me a favor, pass me those gherkins. These gherkins are really something. Haven't had any in a while. - What were you saying, comrade Captain about Berenshtein? - I've received all sorts of
recommendations about him. They want to award him the gold star of And I obviously I do what I
have to hide them, get it. - If you're, Captain, I'll
introduce you to Berenshtein. (door bangs) - Well, where is he? (fist thuds)
(captain groans) - Berenshtein. A real
pleasure to meet you. Do you think I fight
for your commendations? - Volodya, what's the sudden hurry? Couldn't they have mentioned this earlier? What are they thinking? - Quit grumbling, Imas. We have two days to prepare. Make sure all those lover boys
report to me in five minutes. - Yes, sir. - Could you make it ten minutes, Comrade? - Comrade Dubovoy! - I'm so glad to see you. I heard you're flying
out, so I came to visit. Let's sit down. I understand you're being
sent to western Ukraine. I heard the order came from above. They sent out four units. None of them returned, Volodya. - I know. - Do they? Stay safe, son. - All assembled, sir, Zarenko
and Luneva are missing. - Thank you. - Comrade Vasiliev! Comrade Vasiliev - Operator Alexandra, you're
lucky you need to fly. Otherwise I'd have you
detained for five days for unauthorized absence. - Forgive me, Comrade Vasiliev, I was at the shooting range. I've never held a weapon before. - Get on that plane and get dressed. - Yes, sir! - Where are you, Zarenko! - Commander, what's the delay? It's time to take off. - Zarenko, have you lost your mind? - What the hell is that? - It's a goose, sir. - I see it's a goose. What's it doing here? - There's a superstition that
you need to give the pilot a gift before you take off. So I've decided Imas' book
says geese saved Rome, and this goose is going to save us. - Just sit down, Zarenko. - Straight away. (engine roaring)
(thunder rumbling) - Listen up, we're
crossing the front lines. Prepare to parachute! You'll take turns jumping, no
more than two seconds apart. Otherwise you'll never
find each other down there. (alarm beeping) (gun firing) Shut the door! Get away from the windows! I've shut it. That's
it. Is everyone alright? Where the hell are we now? - I don't know. The
instruments are damaged. It's your call, you can either jump, or we can return to the airport. - One, two, three, four, five. Where is the radio operator? (soldier screaming) come here. - Dammit. - There's someone there
inside my parachute. - Who the hell are you? Who are you? Answer me! Tell us who you are? Don't stay silent. (man speaking in foreign language) What's going on? What language is he speaking? That's it, shut up. - His tongue seems to be working, but he doesn't speak Ukrainian. - Comrades, I don't know
how to tell you this, but welcome to Poland. - How that possible? We were flying to the
Carpathian Mountains! (speaking in foreign language) - Can you show me on the map? (speaking in foreign language) - I think we're 60 miles
away from our destination. - What should we do? - If the food sacks fell near the village, the Germans will be here soon. It would be suicide for us stay here. - We're leaving now
and taking him with us. (speaking in foreign language) - Be quiet, get up. (speaking in foreign language) - Commander, bad news, Guzanov
has a compound fracture! Without medicine, without a cast, he'll never make it to the target. - Then make sure he makes it. - It looks like an
abandoned field hospital. Maybe there's even some
medicine left inside? Comrade Vasiliev? - It's not a hospital. - There are posts with barbed wire. - Then what was this? A village burned by the Germans? - Doesn't look like it. - Alright, Revenko and Platonov, stay here with Indik and Gozanov. The rest of you, follow me.
- Yes, Sir. - On your wedding day. Love, Father. (housefly buzzing)
(crow cowing) - Commander! Commander! Commander! We found someone there,
all covered in blood. He speaks French, we
can't understand anything. - Volodya, the comrades found a Frenchman hiding behind that hill. He claims he escaped from a detainee camp and that the Germans are
developing something dangerous. It's very clear he wants us to report to Comrade Stalin immediately. He could be delusional. - What did you see? (speaking in foreign language) What's he saying? Hold on. - He says he's an energy engineer. He worked with other prisoners
at a training facility in which the Germans
are developing missiles that are tall as buildings. - Have you seen them? (speaking in foreign language) - Yes, he says he saw one, once. (speaking in foreign language) - Imas, translate. - He said something about chemistry, I didn't really understand it. But what I got is that
these missiles could destroy half the continent. - My comrades, are we sure
our new friend is even sane? - We're staying here. - We'll get provisions,
if we are lucky, medicine. - But hold on, according to our orders, we're 40 miles away from our target. - Then they'll have to change the order. - Volodya, under any circumstances, we need to report to headquarters before we make a decision like that. - They'll have to change the order. - You said yourself that staying here would be
like committing suicide. - Imas, you have to trust me,
we should stay right here. - Do you believe he's telling the truth? - I don't know. But if even half of what he says is true, then we're incredibly lucky. - Comrade Commander, I can't get through and I've tried five times. - We are out out of communication range. Get some rest. - Request, Sir, can I sit
next to you for a while? - Tonight sky looks very
special, maybe it always does, I just never noticed. - Do you know how many
stars are in the sky? How many stars are in the sky? How many weeds in the field? How many crumbs in a load of bread? How many drops in the sea? Remember you're the only one for me I miss home. My father used to recite that
poem to me when I was little, my stepfather, - I never
met my real father. - I don't remember mine.
He died when I was five. - Recall anything?
- He was a watchmaker. And as a child, I'd sit on his lap, I liked to pretend we were
fixing clocks together. Time stood still when we
were together like that. I don't remember anything else. It's been so long. I don't even remember his face. So how does your poem end? Remember you're the only one for me. Without you there is no sky, without you there is no sea, like a loaf of bread without crumbs, like the sea without any drops. (birds chirping) - Shura, read out what we got.
- Yes. Why is there no - new
information about the facility? When can we expect accurate information? As you can see, central
command is losing patience while we've been looking for the facility for almost two months. We've lost a lot of
intelligence operatives. It's getting harder and
harder to evade the Germans and we haven't even gotten
close to the facility. So we need a plan? Imas? - Okay, here's what we've
learned from people we found who escaped it. The secret facility is being used for the purpose of developing
long-range missiles. The facility is heavily guarded. Our intelligence operatives
are caught long before they get anywhere near the area. All roads leading to it
are hermetically sealed. We know the facility is located
somewhere between Rzeszow and Krakow, but precisely
where, we have no idea. - I'd say to hell with it. It's not wort the price we pay. We've lost so many people over it. - What if we sent people
who are able to blend in like for example helpless locals. Can you find me some disabled locals? (speaking in foreign language) - He will find some. We are also gonna need elderly people, Who won't raise suspicion There are eight central
roads run through this area, and to 20-30 dirt paths
in addition to the roads. And the mission for our people is to pass through all those roads. The main objective is to
mark wherever they're stopped by the Germans. - Stop! Where do you think you're going? - We're going to gather mushrooms. - No, no, turn back. - We put a mark on the map,
indicating every checkpoint and at the center of that perimeter will be our price, the German facility. - That's the SS officer who's in charge of
security at the facility. They're having a party today. I'll try and lure him
out at 7 P.M. Be ready. - This boy here, is he your son? - Yes, he is my son. He is my helper. - What's that?
- I don't know. - This roadblock wasn't here before. - Step out. Can you show me your pass? If you don't have a valid pass. What's that there? - Yaneck, if anything goes wrong, run away and get this
note to the commander. There's something sticking
out of his pocket. Do you have something there? Unbutton your coat. Let's
see what you're hiding. Come here.
(gun firing) - Wait, where are you, Victoria? Wait, come here. I've missed you. - Close your eyes. (gun thuds) - Zarenko, make sure
he gets food and drink. There you are, Dembica! (suspenseful music) - [Imas] Volodya, can I
interrupt for a moment? - We found it, Imas! It's in Dembica. What's wrong. - The head of Starzhenice, near Baligrod. He's our informant. - Yes, I know, what of it? - After the incident
with the burned village you asked us to tell
you of anything similar. - The village head reports
seeing the Germans capture a large group of Jews
families with children. Maybe 100 people. He said they will be execution tomorrow. Volodya, I understand . But we can't risk the
operation, we've come too far. Moreover, we have direct
orders from headquarters not to go anywhere near that town. The presence of superior enemy forces. Volodya, you can believe
your people would follow you through the gates of hell, but not now, not when we're this close. You know that there's too much at stake. You must accept it.
There's nothing we can do. - Leave now. As soon as we enter we'll
split into two groups. One, two, three, four, go. Zarenko, there's a
guard in the watchtower. One, two, three. (gun firing)
(thunder rumbling) Quiet, quiet. To me. - Come on, move, you filthy swine. (men humming) (gun firing)
(people screaming) (siren blaring) Only one building left. (gun firing) (somber music) I'm the commander of the
Pozharsky partisan battalion. The gate is open. You're free to go at any time. Those who choose to stay
will be given a weapon. Then you'll become partisans. You'll be fighting for your home with us. That might be true freedom. Not everyone is born to be a fighter, but we were all born to be free. A free man chooses for himself
how to live, and how to die. Today we bid farewell to our
brothers and sisters in arms, who gave their lives so
that others may live. The entire world owes
them an endless debt. My name is Leonid Berenshtein. I'm proud to be one of you. I was also meant to have a
yellow badge on my shirt. And I also made my choice. It's very possible that
soon, maybe tomorrow, our lives will come to an end. But it's not death that matters, but who we are when we meet it. (suspenseful music) (upbeat music) (dramatic music)
