Powerful

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

It's 1999, the Second Chechen War. Young Russian Army recruit Kolia is filming the troops. They kill an elderly couple. Their 9 year old son Hadji escapes with his baby brother. He leaves the baby with the neighbors and joins the refugees going north. Alone and turning mute, he is taken in by french woman Carole who is writing a report for the EU Human Rights Committee. Helen (Annette Bening) runs the local humanitarian effort and dismisses her work. Meanwhile, Hadji's sister actually survived the massacre and sets off searching for him. The movie also follows Kolia as he signs up with his friend. He faces brutal treatment in the Russian Army and is then sent to the front.This is a French film made in Georgia. I like the kid and the French woman, no matter how unlikely the situation. The sister's story has a few compelling moments although the reunion is never in doubt. Kolia is never that compelling to me. His part could function much better by itself which would look closer to Full Metal Jacket. By itself, his story has value. The production and the war torn setting all look fine. It's just that I don't care that much about him and I kept waiting for the movie to return to the boy. I also have an issue with her boring speech to the committee. She has a great prop for her report. She could simply film Hadji talking about losing his family and that would be infinitely more riveting than her report. It seems like an obvious move for the story and for her character. It would then be even more heartbreaking when her boss reprimands her for her supposed stunt. Somebody should write better. Overall, I like the kid and his journey. The other stuff and the minor problems detract from a better score.

This is a remake of a 1948 movie with the same name, but with a second story along side the updated original. Like the original movie, this will tug at your heart by displaying the real cost of war. But unlike the original, this movie not only shows the "victim" side through the use of a homeless little child, it also shows the "victimization" of 18 year old boys, those having to fight. This movie is a bit gory, but is very respectful and does not show gratuitous gore. The movie seems to develop slowly, a style many who enjoy European movies have come to expect. However, unlike many European movies, this one has a nice "twist" at the end that is likely to put a smile on your face, in the midst of the horrors and realities of war. The two stories are only tied together at the very end and only in a brief, somewhat unsatisfying way. But if one understands that the movie is reflecting on how awful war is on young lives, it does make sense. Slow, moving and powerful. Not the typical fast paced, complex and neatly wrapped up US production. If you want to watch, sit, relax and enjoy.

This film is set during the Second Russo Chechen War and deals, essentially, with one families fate. The film opens with Russian soldiers filming the aftermath of an 'anti-terrorist operation' – which is essentially destroying a Chechen village and executing civilians. One of the families's affected have two boys and Hadji escapes with his baby brother. After an arduous journey his path crosses that of Carole (Berenice Bejo) who works for an NGO.Her initial reticence is soon replaced by affection as she tries to care for the young boy who has been so traumatised that he has stopped speaking. We also get the story of the common Russian soldier as shown through the experiences of Kolia (Maksim Emelyanov) and the dehumanising way they are made to conform.What follows is a tragic, moving and plaintive anti-war film. The futility and pointlessness of conflict is shown in such a naked way as to be almost surreal. The film goes almost black and white in places as if war drains the colour from life – which for many it must surely do. The performances are amazing and I have to admit I was moved to tears on more than one occasion. Written and directed by Michel Hazanavicius who also directed 'The Artist' – he has managed to capture the feeling of fear, desperation and hope all at the same time and make a two hour film that seems to slip past in mere minutes. One of the more praiseworthy films I have seen for a while and indeed worthy of all the plaudits and more.

Academy Award winning director, Michel Hazanavicius, directs a beautiful film about four interconnected stories that face the tragedies of the Chechnya War. I honestly was not even aware of what this war entailed until I saw this film. Hazanavicius previously directed the Oscar winning film The Artist (2011) and thus takes a very dramatic turn with his newest feature. The Search is not lighthearted at all like his previous films. It is rooted in darkness and horror. The film opens up to a soldier filming a family being slaughtered as a form of entertainment. The entire mood becomes dark, and that effect is not due to the grayish tint that happens to be present throughout the film. The darkness is due to the realities of war and the effects it has on everyone from young men thrown into mandatory military service to children left as orphans. The plot follows Hadji, a young lad who witnesses his family's murder by the soldiers at the beginning of the film. Hadji flees his home in search of someplace safer and is reluctant to be picked up by refugees and taken to an orphanage. He does not know however that his teenage sister, Raissa, managed to survive. She begins to search for Hadji, whom she believes is still alive. The plot thickens as we now move on to see a young Russian teen, Kolia, recruited for military duty. This becomes the most disturbing part of the film. As we see Hadji's life slowly improving after befriending a human rights worker, the film follows the slow deterioration of a young man's morals by the facets of war. Kolia transforms from a normal teenage boy into a ruthless killing machine that embodies no hope of redemption. He learns to kill innocence and leave what's left of his childhood behind. This transition in the film offers an interesting perspective. The audience goes from watching the horrors caused by war to sympathizing with a Russian soldier who becomes responsible for more destruction in the future. As one innocent life begins to improve, another innocent life begins to decline. Kolia never wanted to join the Russian military shown by his suicide attempts and frequent moments of hysteria. Hadji obviously didn't want his parents murdered. Therefore, both stories offer two dramatically different sides of war traumas. While Hadji's future remains hopeful however, Kolia's spirals downhill into a black box of despair. It's interesting to see that the people responsible for warfare have the most tragic endings. The point is, no matter which side you're on, war offers no benefits to the players directly involved. It transforms and configures humanity into a world nobody would want to live in. Children are forced to mature way beyond their years, and families are torn apart.With the help of the human rights worker, Carole, Hadji's situation goes from horrible to optimistic. Berenice Bejo plays Carole. Once again working with Michel Hazanavicius, the Oscar nominated actress delivers another masterful performance. She provides a light at the end of the tunnel effect. Carole houses young Hadji after seeing him wandering the streets alone and without any provisions. The human rights worker establishes a connection with Hadji after several unsuccessful tries due to Hadji's complete silence. He's experienced traumatic events that would obviously leave someone shell shocked and saddened. It is Berenice Bejo who steals the show. With her persistent attitude in trying to raise support and awareness for the innocent victims of the Chechnya War, she ignites a burning passion to help especially after hearing other victims' stories. The best scene showing this determination and relentless attitude is when Carole is on the phone with a European Union correspondent. She has been trying to arrange a meeting to inform people of the issues she witnesses every day. Her speech, backed with a mixed range of power, frustration, and genuine care, not only gets her a meeting but also leaves the audience wanting to help the situation too. Although family is destroyed in this film, it offers a positive alternative. Carole wants to adopt Hadji, but we know that Raissa is still alive and searching for him. This puts us in a perplexing spot because we want both Carole and Raissa to achieve what they have been searching for all along. Carole searches for inspiration and meaning to her work and life finding that in Hadji, while Raissa searches for what's left of her family. The Search offers multiple perspectives at the negative effects of war. The soldier, innocent child, and maturing teenager face direct effects while the orphanage head, EU correspondent, and human rights worker face indirect effects. The complexity of each situation is made so easy to watch and understand. Michel Hazanavicius is a great director, and I will always continue to search for his future films.