Historical drama, action movie. The author of this review has loved this series since childhood, because he watched it on the box every time it was shown. He remembers almost everything by heart, but every time he worries about the characters anyway. And so, it's time to review this series again for a review. And we can safely say that it still looks great. Beautiful, spectacular, dramatic. And here is a brief opinion - The best Russian TV series about the Airborne forces. But, in order to be at least a little objective, it is necessary to touch not only the obvious advantages of this series, but also its disadvantages (which certainly exist), therefore, it is necessary to finish such an important introduction and proceed to the analysis.
So, the pros:
1. Scenario - the picture touches on a difficult time in the history of our country, namely the decade from 1991 to 1999, when the USSR collapsed and Russia was formed in its place, and the former union republics became independent states. Long-standing interethnic conflicts broke out (Georgian-Abkhaz, Georgian-Ossetian, Nagorno-Karabakh between Armenians and Azerbaijanis, the civil war in Tajikistan, the rebellion, and then the first Chechen war, the Moldovan-Transnistrian conflict, and so on). And all this had to be settled (and in the case of Chechnya, to restore constitutional order and put an end to international terrorism) by the Russian army, and in particular by three friends, paratroopers Lischilin, Kudinov and Samorukov, the last lieutenants of the Soviet Union. They became defenders of Russia at a difficult time for the country and the people, when the army was unloved and unappreciated, when experienced and ambitious officers left its ranks, this almost led to a personnel famine. Fate and service will shake our friends literally all over the world, but they will always complete the task, because the landing is forever, and no one but us. The characters (both main and secondary) are well written, the dialogues are also pleasing, because you feel that real people are saying this, the dynamics are also pleasing, you will not get bored under any circumstances. All eight episodes fly by in an instant. Moreover, this timekeeping managed to accommodate a decade of the life and service of our heroes.
2. Russia and the CIS of the nineties - through the prism of the main characters and their families and lovers, the viewer sees a picture of the "dashing nineties", which we survived by some miracle. This is the collapse of a powerful country, wars on its outskirts, impoverishment of the population, banditry, and people's attempts to simply survive in these years, and all this did not bypass the army, in which it became "not prestigious" to serve, and although it does not put much pressure on the viewer, but the scenery speaks for itself for myself. There will be mentions of MMM, and vouchers, and Lenya Golubkov, pop songs of those years and wars in which Russian soldiers showed miracles of bravery while officers tried to defend principles and not fall into corruption, to fight hazing. They touched on the topic of officers' wives - who need to be put up a monument for their inhuman endurance and the ability to wait for their defenders in any conditions (after all, they may not return, which means constantly worrying about them and jumping up from any call at any time of the day). The creators did not forget to reveal the theme of friendship and honor.
3. Scenes of fights and fights - they are frequent guests here, so the creators have worked on them properly. Pyrotechnics are not spared here, and they pamper you with blood. Of course, it would be foolish to count on massive battle scenes, but for the series, the extras were decent. At least you believe in what is happening, and it is clear that the actors were trained for filming, for which you can only praise. The uniform and clothes fit perfectly.
4. Music - it turns out that the composer in this series was Ivan Burlyaev (who wrote the music for the excellent series "Stormy Gates"), so you can hear familiar melodies here, but also the main theme is very good (it was she who was most remembered at the first viewing). The music is appropriate here, and it is remembered, and at the same time it is inseparable from this series. The author of this review highly recommends listening to it.
5. Acting - you will be surprised, but once upon a time in ancient times (the zero years of the twenty-first century), Russian actors behaved naturally in the frame, did not shout, did not pretend to be incomprehensible, did not whisper, so that the viewer could not distinguish the speech of the characters. They just played real people, and so convincingly that you believe them. Yes, there was a Russian acting school, there was.
So, the cons:
1. Historical inaccuracies - despite all the obvious advantages, the creators of the series made a number of historical inaccuracies and blunders. For example, one of the heroes receives money from the future (after the 1997-98 reform), car brands are also from the future, as well as songs by famous pop groups. A small note on the icons on the form. Nothing critical, but for an experienced person it will become a kind of annoying element.
2. Open final - what happened to the heroes? Did they win or not? It's just that the series ends abruptly with the dedication of the Russian army and that's it. Well, you can't either, after all! The audience got used to the characters over the course of eight episodes, and you cut the narrative off so abruptly? The one who came up with it is to write out the Darwin Prize.
A little bit about the main characters:
1. Lieutenant (Lieutenant Colonel) Loshilin, performed by Nikita Yemshanov, is the most cheerful of the trio of friends. He almost never gets discouraged and is always ready to go on the most dangerous ventures. During the series, he shows himself to be an excellent commander, who, nevertheless, can listen to the opinions of his subordinates. Nikita played this character very convincingly. It's a pity that he died in a car accident in 2011. He could have played many more good roles (although we don't know for sure if he "left" in time). Bravo!
2. Lieutenant (Senior Lieutenant) Kudinov, performed by Kirill Pletnev, is the most persistent and most daring of the trio of friends, for whom honor and service to the Motherland are above all. And ironically, it is for this that his life will hurt him, and more than once will make him test his character. But even after all this, he remains a loyal soldier and a competent officer on whom the Motherland can rely. Kirill has repeatedly proved that he is good at playing the military, and in this work he proved it once again. Bravo!
3. Lieutenant (Senior Lieutenant) Sumarokov, played by Egor Beroev, is the most silent and modest of the trio of friends. His service to the Motherland was extremely interesting, but no less exciting. My favorite character from trinity. Egor also plays the military often, and here he was extremely convincing. Bravo!
In addition to them, many other iconic actors have starred here, but we will not stop there, otherwise the review will be too long. Russian Russian cinema. I just want to note that after fifteen years, this series looks very good, although the Russian army has changed beyond recognition during this time, and such patriotic series only benefit both Russian cinema and strengthen the prestige of the army in society, because now it has become an honor to serve in the army.
And a little bit about the creators. Konstantin Ernst personally financed the filming of the series on Channel One. Yes, those were the days when the First and Ernst gave out a good movie, for which you did not have to blush.
A score of 10 out of 10 and a recommendation to watch!
