Visually great looking Russian action thriller taking place in the Caucasus region of the Russian Federation in 2004 during the Second Chechen
war. Based on real events, when the Chechen warlord Shamil Bazgayev/Basayev with support from "foreign countries" fought for an independent
independent islamic state. The film mentions the islamist terrorist attack in Beslan, North Ossetia in September 2004 where over 300 people, half
of them children, died. Russia have had "trouble" with their Caucasus states since the 19th century, and foreign countries have fueled, and will
surely continue to do so, the unrest, and to provide weapons and training for the insurgents including foreign jihadi fighters.

In the films intro we get to see how the Chechen leader Shamil Bazgayev (Ayub Tsingiev) executes a young russian soldier, and how the other
older prisoner, Captain Egor (Igor Petrenko) is spared to be used as a hostage switch.

Beautiful Caucasus and i hope i will get to visit this region sometime (when the Covid-19 hell is over)

Two year on, in Caucasus, Ingushetia 2004, five anti aircraft robots has disappeared and fallen into Bazgayev's hands, and Russian FSB, the
Federal Security Service sends a special operations squad to Caucasus, including Egor, his friend Ravil (Aleksey Vertkov), Lieutenant Timur
(Ivan Shakhnazarov), an Origami maker of Cranes (perhaps a nod to "Bladerunner") and their boss, the General (Aleksey Shevchenkov).
Luckily the robots stolen won't reach their targets however, a code is needed for that and a furious Bazgayev can see it turn off before hitting
it's intended target (a helicopter).

But there has been robberies all over the region by the rebels and they also receive fundings from abroad, and the question is - what do
Bazgayev need all the money for ? Some FSB action raids and intelligence work gives the answer: He needs it for buying weapons and some
deadlier rocket launchers from Georgia to attack an international summit in Saint Petersburg and to try and take down the plane of the President.
The money to the Georgians will be delivered by a quiet family man and merchant Isa (finely played by Dmitry Parastayev).

This was a pretty good action-thriller due to the fine cinematography by Alik Tagirov and the exotic location shooting in Caucasus.
The Helicopter attack was nicely staged and with real explosions (i think). Dmitry Parastayev and Ayub Tsingiev were good as Isa and
Shamil Bazgayev. Weirdly enough the supposedly hero of the film, Captain Egor wasn't very likeable at all, constantly harassing the
youngest member of the FSB unit, Timur, an asshole really but perhaps he was supposed to be funny ?
Egor was incompetent too missing Bazgayev's secret hiding place and thereby also causing Timur's death as he was left alone as guard.
I'm not sure if Igor Petrenko was meant to be likeable, after all War changes every man to the worse and he had experienced some shit.

This alternative market DVD presents the film in a fine anamorphic widescreen ratio (not stated but 2.40:1 perhaps) and in russian audio
with also fine english subtitles, region ALL