Blokpost

We are shown a comedy of everyday life on a outpost deep in hostile land which is, except for the prologue, in line with the three aristotelian unities. Except for conflict within the outpost has contacts with a mute prostitute, her sister-pimp, an investigation committee, the general, the locals (which, unlike the real-life chechens do not seem to speak Russian too well) and enemies of high rank they meet for negotioations (at vodka). This movie can serve as an inspiration for mods for a game like fallout, it can be regarded as a parable and it can be watched without translation (though some of the humor is gonna be lost). All in all it is a decent movie. It even has some romance in it, and a kawaii little animal.

You can call "Blokpost" a Russian "Full Metal Jacket." It takes place in the Caucasus, presumably in Chechnya where a platoon of Russian soldiers is sent to a distant checkpoint after an accident in which a civilian has been shot. The film is a drama, but it also carries some comedic touches, which primarily focus on the soldiers' day to day interactions with each other. Otherwise, the platoon is simply trying to survive while dealing with the hostile attitude of the locals, averting an unseen sniper who constantly takes shots at them, and facing the Russian investigation committee. In fact, it seems that the investigation office at times poses more threat to the soldiers than the enemy they are supposed to fight with, especially when the general basically betrays the whole platoon. The film's ending is tragic and somewhat abrupt, which was probably done purposefully in order to heighten the unsettling feel and a bitter aftertaste. Overall, quite a good movie, though far from a masterpiece. However, it's surely worth seeing if you are interested in the subject this movie deals with.

Blokpost stands out among recent features from Russia bridging the gap between the few artsies and an overflow of low-end thrillers. The script is decent as is the acting (apart from Buldakov's). Mebby I had too much of Bodrov Jr. lately but it's a pleasure to find that there are young Russian actors who can sound differently on different occasions throughout the movie. The movie is a story of a platoon of Russian Army, stationed in an unnamed but recognizeable rebel province, where it is to emulate peacekeepers and to provide military presence for "Moscow" at the same time. The storyline spans less than a couple of weeks spent on a remote outpost (blokpost) where the soldiers are given the task of checking locals for weapons. Platoon is largely forgotten apart from the investigation for the shooting of a civilian and a rebel sniper nearby. The story is somewhat wittingly narrated by one of the soldiers, the Bones (Skelet) but is filmed as a third-person view. As was noted by some the ending is quite predictable, and the not very cunningly hang rifle (an SVU in this case) shoots right where it's supposed to in full compliance with Chekhov's formula. But overall the movie is definitely worth a look.

There is a whole genre of war/army films that combines humour with actual army operations. Usually it involves small military units, and the humour comes from conflicts between characters in the group, and from absurd situations the script places the characters in. However, these films often come across as inappropriate, exploiting serious wars, and treating them with disrespect. Usually the filmmaker will think of a series of funny situations, stitch them together into a story, and then come up with way of making it look like he has genuine, relevant commentary on the war. But this is totally dishonest. The commentary in these films is as shallow as the cheap humour that abounds in them.

'Checkpoint' is a film about nothing. It merely entertains, but says nothing new or relevant about war. It doesn't make one think, or even feel anything. Oh, there will be a tragic death or two, but these are the diversions I mentioned, designed to give the illusion that the filmmaker started with a desire to make a statement about war, rater than to stitch together humorous scenes for our enjoyment. I find this film dishonest and empty, and I felt cheated watching it. I need more than cheap laughs, and I get particularly angry when the film hints it will provide more, yet never delivers on that promise.

A huge disappointment. And a bit of an insult to soldiers who actually fought the war, and didn't sell ammo to the enemy in order to get drugs.

The movie shows a few days in a life of a squad of Russian soldiers in a relatively quiet area of Chechnya. Apart from a lone sniper, nobody bothers the distant roadblock the soldiers are manning, and they even succeed to establish some sort of relationships with people of one of the local villages. The movie is very simple, and so is the acting. As someone has already mentioned, Aleksei Buldakov, playing the general, is probably the major casting mistake of this movie. I know people mentioned that this film is too predictable. However, I believe, that's it's power is in it's predictability. We know there is a sniper. We know the soldiers risk their lives daily to reach the roadblock and get back to the quarters. We know someone is going to die.We don't now who it is going to be, AND SO DON'T THE SOLDIERS. This gives the watcher an opportunity to feel what the soldiers feel day after day. The sniper is there. He is going to kill. Who will it be? Anyone, who has been in a situation even distantly related to this, will understand what it is all about. Another wonderful thing about this film, unlike many other recent Russian films I have seen, is that there is no right or wrong. Nothing is black or white. It's all covered by gray fog, and if there is no fog, it's all covered by smoke grenades. There are no heroes and no bad guys for a change. A solid 8/10.