The wars in Chechnya and Afghanistan are far from the brightest page in Soviet and Russian history. Wars took tens of thousands of lives, crippled and mutilated even more. A huge number of young children left in a foreign country health or even life.
Of course, such a topic could not go unnoticed by the directors, and many films and series were shot about those events. Some are frankly propagandistic, others are just weak. In this collection, we have compiled a list of the top 10 best action films and mini-series on the theme of the war in Afghanistan and Chechnya, the viewing of which will please all lovers of the genre.
10. Achilles Heel (2006)
The action director Igor Talpa talks about businessman Maxim and journalist Lisa, who, due to a tragic set of circumstances, are captured by a terrorist group led by Marat. They hope that a ransom will be paid for them and they will be free, but the transfer of money breaks down. Then they understand that in order to gain freedom, they will have to rely only on their own forces.
The film, of course, does not whitewash the actions of the kidnappers, but tries to give an explanation of their actions. Marat is not a caricature criminal without a clear motivation, but a hero with a difficult fate. He is forced to become a terrorist by the murder of his family, for which he intends to avenge everyone indiscriminately.
9. Two steps to silence (1991)
The film dips the viewer in the events of February 1989, when Soviet troops were preparing to leave Afghanistan. At the same time, the war was not over yet, and most importantly - the soldiers began to ask questions. After many deaths and broken fates, they began to wonder who they are. Can they consider themselves liberators? Or are they more likely to be defined as invaders? The action movie of Yuri Tupitsky is not trying to give a definite answer, but he gives the audience food for thought.
Real Soviet soldiers during the war asked themselves the same questions, and there is still debate around the world about who they were.
8. Landing. Nobody but us (2009)
Mini-series "Landing. Nobody but us ”is concentrated around a group of paratroopers who, in a difficult time for Russia after the collapse of the Soviet Union, protect the interests of the motherland, saving human lives. However, it shows not only the battles (which are excellent here), but also the undercover games of officers, hazing, corruption, and other unpleasant, but real aspects of the army.
All this is shown, although not with 100% certainty and realism, but the fact that they are talking about it, rather than trying to hide it, is already pleasing.
7. Stormy Gates (2006)
Another mini-series (only 4 episodes), this time based on the book by Alexander Tamonikov, "The Company Goes to Heaven." The film tells about the battle at the Stormy Gate pass. Here, at an altitude of 776, in 2000 there really was a fierce battle, but the tape, like the novel, is fiction: the author claimed to have written it before real events.
Courage, heroism, the ability to sacrifice - not only this is shown here, but also stiffness, pain, fear and other unpleasant aspects of the war. After the battle, not many soldiers survive, whom everyone considers heroes, but they themselves have a different opinion. When they are presented with awards (one of the fighters becomes the Hero of Russia), each of them understands what price they got and the value of these awards. The way the medals were deserved left an indelible imprint on everyone, and no one can fix their broken life with any reward.
6.9 company (2005)
In recent years, Fedor Bondarchuk decided to scold both for his directorial work and for acting. This is not to say that the claims are unfounded: he really associates with projects of dubious quality, but no one dares to say that he does not know how to make a good movie. The drama "9 companies" is vivid proof of this. This, without exaggeration, is a cult Russian film about the war, in which all the horror faced by young guys who came to Chechnya was shown without embellishment.
Not having time to really live, they fell into a situation that completely changed them. No one returned, and many did not return at all, and sometimes the reason was the inaction of their own leadership.
5. Kandahar (2010)
The main characters of the film “Kandahar” are 5 crew members of an IL-76 cargo plane who are captured by a terrorist group in Afghanistan. Hoping for the help of the Russian authorities, they patiently wait until they are returned home, but time is running out and no one is in a hurry to get them out. They realize that if they don’t want to die in captivity with the Islamists, they must flee. To do this, they have to pretend that they are ready to teach terrorists how to fly. In fact, they are cultivating an escape plan, which they manage to realize only after 378 days of captivity.
The film was shot for a decent amount by the standards of 2010 - $ 7 million. The fact that the box office managed to earn twice as much proves once again that the tape turned out to be good. For such Russian cinema is not ashamed. Despite the fact that there is a minimum of dynamics and action scenes in it, the scriptwriter, cameraman, director and actors managed to remove everything in such a way that it is difficult to tear yourself away from the screen.
4. Shooter (2012)
And again, a mini-series in the center of events of which there is a group of soldiers, each of whom survived a terrible tragedy - the loss of a partner and friend. They go to the mountains with a simple and understandable goal - revenge. Understanding that not everyone will come back. Is he. willing to risk their lives, but what they are not ready for is the betrayal of the one whom they considered a brother.
3. Throw March (2003)
The action march "Throw" talks about a simple guy from an orphanage who decides to join the army during the second Chechen war. Good physical preparation and an internal core allow him to easily get into the best troops and make friends. Unfortunately, for him, as for other guys, the service turns into a tragedy: he is captured and loses a close friend.
But there is no silver lining, because after going through real hell, he manages to find love and family. For him, who grew up in an orphanage and never knew a family, this becomes a much more significant award than all the orders of the world.
2. Officers (2006)
Egor Osorogin, nicknamed Stavr and Alexander Gaydamak with the call sign Shuraken, are not only close friends, but also the special forces elite. There are no impossible tasks for them, and wherever they are sent - to Afghanistan or even Africa - everywhere they fulfill the mission assigned to them with brilliance. Each of them is ready without hesitation to close a friend from the bullet, but when the girl Zhenya appears in their life, everything changes. Both fall in love with her, and love, as you know, can be stronger and stronger than male friendships.
1. Shooting Mountains (2011)
Captain Merkuryev is an experienced border guard officer who is ordered to take up defense at a border outpost in the Pankisi Gorge. A group of terrorists led by Hassan is preparing to illegally cross the Russian border, but Merkuryev will not allow this. In that battle, he receives not only wounds, but also finds in the person of Hassan a dangerous enemy with whom life and war will more than once push him face to face.