About the film
The front is about to move, and Soviet command needs to know whether German armoured divisions are secretly regrouping. Lieutenant Travkin, quiet and serious, takes a handful of scouts deep into enemy territory. Their radio call sign is Star; headquarters is Earth.
The film follows the patrol step by step through forests and villages full of German troops, and every encounter could be the last. Back at base a young radio operator, Katya, waits for a signal from Travkin that may never come.
Kazakevich, who served as a scout himself, wrote the story in 1947. This 2002 version gave it to a new generation and became one of the most watched Russian war films of the new century.
Did you know?
- The novella was written by Emmanuil Kazakevich, a wartime reconnaissance officer.
- An earlier film of the same story was made in 1949.
- The cast are young actors, close in age to the real scouts of 1944.
