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Poster for Come and See

Come and See

The cruelest side of war.

1985 · 2h 22m · Not Rated Drama, War
Directed by Elem Klimov

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Overview

The invasion of a village in Belarus by German forces sends young Florya into the forest to join the weary Resistance fighters, against his family's wishes. There he meets a girl, Glasha, who accompanies him back to his village. On returning home, Florya finds his family and fellow peasants massacred. His continued survival amidst the brutal debris of war becomes increasingly nightmarish, a battle between despair and hope.

Director and cast

Critics on Rotten Tomatoes

Top critics, in their words

All reviews
90%
Tomatometer
Rotten

I suppose that never forgetting has its place, but not when it insists on such narrowly righteous fantasies of revenge.

Pat Graham, Chicago Reader
Fresh

Come and See, the last and most notable film made by the former Soviet director Elem Klimov, is another fusion of popular and vanguard styles, albeit put to more civic-minded use.

J. Hoberman, Village Voice
Fresh

A disorienting and undifferentiated amalgam of almost lyrical poeticism and expressionist nightmare.

Wally Hammond, Time Out
Fresh

Scene for scene, Mr. Klimov proves a master of a sort of unreal realism that seeks to get at events terrible beyond comprehension.

Walter Goodman, New York Times
Fresh

Come and See sounds like an invitation to a child's game. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Rita Kempley, Washington Post

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