5 Days of War (2011)

Overall i would recommend this movie to everyone .It has true historian events in the foundations of its plot. One thing that i didn't like in this movie is the usage of unreal scenarios (holywood heroism , cliché action thriller stuff).I believe that if you as a writer and director using a true story as a basis to you movie you need to make the movie as real as possible.I liked that the scenes were shot very well ,the fights and (almost) all thats happening was shot very good for my taste. I also like when the story of a film is something that we can actually learn from ,needless to say that these "minor" sorties that nobody heard about or did but two days later forgot about it , are stories worth mentioning.

One of the most Russophobic films in recent years was called into being by just another coil of confrontation between the Russian under empire and the Western superpower lead largely by the US, which started just from the Russian-Georgian war and is at its peak right now, when the army of the vast Ukraine, rather than of tiny Georgia, is serving its purpose. One-sided portrayal of war crimes (laying the whole blame on Russia) is in the film; it is what it is, a Russophobic film (but Russophobia will cease prevailing only when the 'Russian empire' gets the upper hand). Mercenaries fighting for the interests of Russia are shown here. The main characters are American war correspondents trying to broadcast the hot news, arranging it in the Russophobic point of view. We Russians dislike such a film as 'war crimes' and 'mercenraries' are considered to be bad things and working for 'Russophobic propaganda', to be public enemy. But!The expression 'war crimes' is no less hypocritical silliness than 'too cruel hangman'. Doing the dirty work - killer's work - one has no time for getting mushy. The one who shouts about some 'codes of war honour', 'rules of war' and 'maxim of war law' from the rooftops must be an evil sly 'puppeteer'; the one who believes it must be an 'obedient puppet'! They say, the Axis warriors of Stalingrad campaign lamented bitterly for need to combat the Red Army according to the 'unfair', 'barbaric' rules imposed on them by the latter. Weren't they delirious, those encircled poor things?! War is neither boxing nor Greco-Roman wrestling to play the game! People just kill in war not to be killed themselves and ignore politeness and morality. And if it comes to that, Americans committed the most awful 'war crime' of all times using nuclear weapons, but the world community did not mind it. Moreover, the Japanese themselves treat those who defeated them with piety. Modern Japanese at least is almost Pidgin English, isn't it a telltale proof of accepting defeat?As for 'mercenaries', is there really a chasm between shabby 'dogs of war' who fight for warmongers' blood money and the holy warriors who combat their motherland's foes? THE RED ARMY STAFF GOT MONEY ALLOWANCE. This is, BTW, an elementary dethronement of the myth that the Red Army was nothing but a horde of slaves who fed German guns with their flesh out of fear of being shot by their own people. See, the only difference between a mercenary and a soldier is, who the employer is: a 'private trader' and 'state', respectively. Please, all claims - to war managers and economists: it is they who decide whether to use mercenaries or to involve state-owned soldiery...And as for ideology, pleasing one party and displeasing the other, let it be on conscience of those who order it and who rush the order; while the will of citizens is either to select any ideology or to be Nihilists. The latter, who are often real cosmopolitans, despise the former, find them 'mob' and put on them the blame for letting themselves push around by their governments, for following the short-term tastes of opportunistic authorities. Well, myself, I had a chance of immigration into Norway but eventually, I found myself back home in Russia, in my native under empire.I find this film rather topical. At the moment, it is available in Russian as well, although on release date, it was, due to ostracism, not dubbed in Russian. Probably, some people from lands formerly dependent upon Russia had dubbed the version I watched: there was a slight accent, and no surprise. Today, Russian is still native language for millions of people all over the former Soviet territory, but the further a representative of once dominating nation goes outside 'Muscovy', the more likely something discouraging about Russia is heard by it. And it is said by the former Russian subjects in more or less clear Russian, so that it would sound clearer and thus more offensive. But these are just illusions. It is not the language that weights but how one treats Russia.But Russia is only treated as an empire. If asked whether to prefer ideas, language, and lifestyle of own nation triumphant all over the world or those of the alien, opposing nation, - one would most likely choose the former. Thus, the majority of Russians would like to have Russian, rather than American and English, cinema, style and language dominant on Earth, isn't it reasonable?But this is an 'alternative reality'. Whilst in real life, even in this particular case of decisive Russian victory, the Americans found an outstanding Finnish director who had shot some films about Russia (i.e.'knows the enemy'), appointed some American, Jewish, Croatian and Finnish actors (all but Russians and Georgian, alas) and cashed up the money needed to film about glorious Georgia combating evil Russia. What have we here? Just a ridiculous grotesque. As if some drunk guy attacked a bouncer, was flung away, but crept out, mumbling (now insipid): 'catched it?! want more?'Such 'pug-films' flying at 'Russia the elephant' have always existed and will certainly be released in future. In case the Ukraine suppresses Russian-backed Donbass and finishes fracturing Lenin statues all over the country, films like this will be likely to expect to be shot even in the lands of uncultivated film industry (Moldova perhaps). And so it will last until Russia is largely looser. But should the new turn of the wheel of fortune lift Russia up, we will be right, as winner is always right.

I found this movie well worth a watch. There are some faults but I think they aren't that major. The good points: Good on location feel. The battles and atrocities are quite well filmed. It's exciting and you feel part of the action. Shows the hard job faced by war correspondents. This is a war many don't know about or vaguely remember. So it's interesting to see a movie about a conflict that took place so recently in 2008. Interesting casting with most cast members playing nationalities they are not. Two Americans as Georgians: Andy Garcia as the Georgian President and Jonathan Schaech as a soldier. Rupert Friend, a British actor as an American journalist. Val Kilmer as a Dutch journalist. Emanuelle Chriqrui, a Canadian Morrocan as a Georgian lady the reporters befriend and who is trying to rescue her family. At least she looks her part.The faults: Some criticise that it was one sided showing the Russians as the sole perpetrators of atrocities. I guess it's up to the viewer to look more into what happened themselves. But don't most WWII movies focus on one side's point of view as well? So I think that criticism is a bit unfair.Another fault is there are some parts of the story that have a Rambo like action quality and unbelievability. It was a bit ridiculous at times during the rescue and scenes with the villains. This hurts the film but they had to make a story to entertain so I don't think it's that bad a fault.The movie wasn't successful financially and had bad reviews. Despite that I think it was entertaining and still worth a watch. It highlights a conflict not many people know about. For those who want action in a film might as well learn something about a little known war at the same time instead of just mindless action.

I think overall it was a good movie. Sure there may have been little too much propaganda but as more I watched the movie the more I started to thought about how disgusting can be one country towards others. As I remember this right one of the heads of Russia did said that the war was planned 2 years before it took place. So it is obvious that there where nothing to do with the people on South-Ossetia or Abkhazia. It was just an excuse. Also it is funny to hear about how Russian television has brainwashed the Russians, how Georgians started the war and so on. This brainwash has lasted 70 years or more. It is like North-Korea but a lighter version.