User:Shortfo7rm/V2

'V2. Escape from Hell' (Девятаев) is a 2021 Russian drama prison action thriller war biopic film directed by Timur Bekmambetov. The film stars Thure Riefenstein, Pavel Priluchny, Pavel Chinarev and Daria Zlatopolskaya. Based on a true story, memories of Soviet Union pilot Mikhail Devyatayev written in his autobiography books was bought into cinematic format rendered into a military action war film produced by Bazelevs Company. The film is the first vertical format blockbuster-evaluated film dedicated to the pilot. Mikhail Devyatayev flew to the front during the Great Patriotic War. In July 1944, his plane was shot down, and the pilots were captured in German captivity. In the most difficult conditions, he managed to develop and implement an escape plan from Hitler's heavily guarded, secret weapons V-2 rocket construction prison, Usedom. It was released on 29 April 2021.

Plot
The plot of the drama, based on real events, unfolds in the summer of 1944. Mikhail Devyatayev and his wife with their son are on their final parade after which the pilot says farewell to their family as he boards the car that drives to the Eastern Front. Devyatayev wistfully looks back at his family, maybe for the last time. He joins the Soviet Air Forces tasked with the formidable mission to battle against the Nazis at the 1st Ukrainian Front. On 13 July 1944, the air force is repelling an enemy air raid near Lviv. The Soviet troops are on the offensive, but the enemy is still very strong in the skies. The Bell P-39 Airacobra of Senior Lieutenant Mikhail Devyataev burns in the dogfight. The pilot ejects from the cockpit and falls with a parachute. Seeing the enemy closing in, the pilot attempts suicide but the gun was a blank. The pilot later looses consciousness. Fighter pilot Mikhail Devyatayev wakes up and realize he is captured in enemy territory at the Luftwaffe recruitment center for prisoners in Lodz. The Russian prisoners are being recruited as Wehrmacht pilots. At home, he is listed as dead and does not plan to return for obvious reasons: saying he is a traitor.

Devyataev has to make a choice: return to the sky, continuing the war on the side of the enemy, or go to a concentration camp on the island of Usedom. The desperate ace chooses the third - escape. Nikolai Larin, second in command major also was captured. However at captivity, he immediately begins to cooperate with the Germans, and calls for the rest of the prisoners to do the same. Debyatayev and a few other brave soldiers on the other hand will not commit treason. They remember to follow the protocols of Order No. 270 of the Red Army. In February 1945, the first escape attempt will get the group to Peenemünde Army Research Center. Thanks to a mystical camp barber in Sachsenhausen, Debyatayev allows his documents to change and thus turn him from a suicide bomber into an ordinary prisoner. The fugitives turned into gunner-penalty takers.

They notice terrestrial escape is not possible because the the island is heavily secured where German cruise missiles are being designed. But Debyatayev can fly away. At the airfield, he took a fancy to the newest enemy bomber, the FAU-2, although he never flew such an unfamiliar jet before. On February 8, the prisoners wait for the technicians to leave and kill a guard for quick pursuit into a secret hangar where the jets are stored. The blueprints and maps of Adolf Hitler's "weapon of retaliation" V-2 ballistic missile blueprints are also swiped on board. Devyatayev hijacks the Heinkel He 111 H-22 aircraft as they fly away - and make the most daring escape in military history together with nine Soviet soldiers. However they have to battle in a dogfight as the Nazi pilots realize the prisoners have escaped and crossed the front line. Devyatayev managed to fly more than 300 km until Soviet anti-aircraft gunners fired on the bomber on the front line. The pilot made an emergency landing and ended up in a Soviet filtration camp.

Cast

 * Thure Riefenstein as Kommandant Berghoff
 * Pavel Priluchny as Mikhail Devyatayev
 * Daria Zlatopolskaya as wife of Devyatayev
 * Pavel Chinarev as Nikolai Larin, second in command pilot (Major)
 * Evgeny Serzin as Sokolov
 * Dmitry Lysenkov as Willie
 * Timofey Tribuntsev as German scientist / barber
 * Patrick Joswig as Klaus
 * Alexey Filimonov as Korzh

Adaptation from biographical material
The film is based on renowned Soviet Union fighter pilot Mikhail Devyatayev who managed to escape the most secret prison of the Nazis - Usedom, an island of the southern Balitc Sea. Devyatayev, the prisoner of war fled the Nazis through stealth and courage. The pilot bought along in the cargo of an hijacked jet, advanced blueprints of Hitler's "weapon of retaliation" - V-2 ballistic missiles. The prisoner of war barely managed to come back home alive to the Soviet Union weighing only 36 kilograms. The blueprints turned the tide of World War II, as the Soviet command later captured the island fortress from the Nazis possibly saving the Soviet Union from the terrible fate of a future launch of the V-2 ballistics missiles. The missiles had the range to hit as far as North America and Moscow. The fugitives managed to obtain the exact layouts of the rocket launchers on the island, which allowed the helped the Allies to destroy the enemy's bases, and made the defeat of Nazis inevitable. Former prisoners of war, after checking, took part in the storming of Berlin; many of them died during the crossing of the Oder and fighting for the city. Of the group of prisoners of war who escaped with Debyateyev, only two survived to the end of the war: the rest died during the capture of Berlin or during the battles with Japan.

Although most of the documents surrounding the mission is classified, the war hero did write two autobiographical books based on the event titled Escape from Hell and Flight to the Sun. On 7 February 1985, Vasily Peskov published a groundbreaking essay Escape in the Komsomolskaya Pravda that surprised many Soviet Union residents.== == The publication renewed the memory of the pilot documenting the raw truth via unpublished archives of the aerial mission such as the even occurring near the secret fascist base where the latest aircraft and V-cruise missiles were tested.

The first cinematic adaptation of Debyateyev's life account was the documentary ''Catch Up and Destroy. Flight of the Pilot M. Devyatayev'' by Narodnoye Kino television company in 2001. A 2014 film adaptation was in development that did not come to reality. The government of Russia was also trying to produce a future film about the people's militia. Today on the island of Usedom there is a monument to the pilot as he was honored there both in Soviet times and after the unification of Germany.

Development
On February 13, 2020, it was announced that V2: Escape From Hell under the direction of Timur Bekmambetov was ready to go into production and become the first blockbuster film made entirely in portrait vertical format. The primary production company is Bazelevs Company. The film will also be a co-production with Voenfilm, MTC Media and Russia 1 TV. The film is also the directorial debut of recurring cameraman and cinematographer of Bazelev's, Sergei Trofimov who has past credits including Night Watch. This is Bazelev Company's second war film after the 1993 Peshawar Waltz. At the Republic of Tatarstan, a coincidental with Debyatayev's own family who lived in the area near Devyatayev Street made Bekmambetov realize the rich cultural history of the Soviet Union soldiers in the second World War. Later studies by Bekmambetov noted what was most impressive about pilot Mikhail Devyatayev's history was the dramatic life story following the World War. According to history the pilot was affected by suspension of judgment from the public for twelve years. The pilot was interrogated during these times. until they realized Debyatayev was truly a war hero. Devyataev helped Sergei Korolev better understand German technologies and take out the necessary equipment. The infusion of German technology into the Soviet Space Program later allowed the Soviet Union to overtake the Americans in the space race. In August 1957, shortly before the successful launch of the first satellite into Earth orbit, Mikhail Devyataev was awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union star.

For director Bekmambetov, the film was an opportunity to create a new format of film tapping into the same qualities of courage and bravery shown from the main character of the film, pilot Devyatayev. The director was always fascinated with airplanes having learned to flew with over forty hours of flight recorded.

Bekmambetov noted, "But in general with Devyatayev, I tried to prove - first of all to myself - that a film can be heroic, adventurous and realistic at the same time. Dirty hands, a rusty airplane, sometimes a poorly working engine, scratched paint on instruments are what make the film true. This is emotionally more important than a glossy, beautiful picture. Devyatayev will have to make a choice - to return to heaven, continuing the war on the side of the enemy, or to go to a concentration camp."

"Devyataev" is a film about the fact that he did not betray, moreover, not even his country, but his friend. In my opinion, this is what patriotism is — loyalty to your word, to your friends, I appreciate these qualities in people, from which loyalty to the country is born. War is attractive to people of art because people find themselves in situations in which their real values and characters are revealed."

"We must understand that there has never been a second such feat in the history of the world and, I hope, there will not be any more. This is a unique feat, it is beyond time and beyond nations."

"This is an unprecedented feat in world history, which has no analogues. Hijacking a plane to a man who weighed 40 kg, an emaciated prisoner, is serious. Also in this story there is a certain detective move, along with the plane, he also stole the Faa documentation." For the director

Themes
The scriptwriters tried to be authentic to the V-2 incident autobiography Escape from Hell written by Devyatayev. They studied archival materials and the design of aircraft. However the film did add fictional elements to enliven the drama and create themes of morality. One such event was when the character Nikolai Larin, second in command pilot POW allies with the Germans. The event was added to explain the themes of patriotism to the mother country and treason. In juxtaposition with the hero character Debyatayev, character Larin adds new conjectures to the viewers about the future consequences of the war if the hero defected. The film is a combination of war action with added emphasis of the theme of honor. The concept is interleaved throughout the film from soldiers remembering to not to betray their motherland at the concentration camps to Debyatayev's tagline as untrustworthy after the Soviet public became skeptical of the underweight pilot's ability to maneuver a German Heinkel He jet the size of an airfield that is usually controlled by three pilots.

The production crew did not want the film to be just about a shooter film. Instead it is a poetic war of character development. The script develops the internal mental warfare of the POWs who are at the edge of fear. The film shows character traits such as resilience and conscience. The film develops the POWs to brave soldiers who start to battle and seek their own individuality - "sincere belief in victory over circumstances can make a person stronger". The film also explains to the audience concept of the power and courage any simple ordinary soldier like Debyatayev can have on society or a war. The themes of forgiveness, compassion, and historical memory are encompassed in the film. Many Russian families have relatives who survived the war including Bemambetovs. The film became a tribute to the departed and survivors of the victory of the World War. The film also lightly explores warfare espionage as the prisoners of war at the concentration camp happened to be located near Peenemünde Army Research Center. There the pilots will not only escape but bring them back trade secrets of V-2 rockets. The title of the film was chosen to represent the plot's quest to seek "heaven" and home past the front lines by escaping from "hell" depicted as concentration camps.

The film was originally supposed to be released in February 2020 in recognition of the 75th anniversary of the escape mission. However the filming was temporary halted and then transitioned remotely due to the COVID-19. At post-production Debyatayev's son Alexander Mikhailovich Devyatayev who was also the film consultant gave approval to the director to change the film's title to Devyatayev for the Russian release due to its authenticity. Debyatayev would actively collaborate with Bekmambetov to make sure the the script was written like a military biopic. According to the son, the film is the definitive film of his father's life and the war. According to Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper, ''V2. Escape from Hell'' is the fourth most anticipated war film in the world in 2021.

Actors
The main role in the film was played by Pavel Priluchny, the film also starred Pavel Chinarev, Kirill Pletnev, Timofey Tribuntsev, Alexey Filimonov, Dmitry Lysenkov, Evgeny Serzin, Daria Zlatopolskaya and other actors. Actor Pavel Priluchny acted for the role of pilot Mikhail Devyatayev. Initially Danila Kozlovsky was enrolled for the pilot role which was later changed to Priluchny who was chosen originally as the cast for the villain Nikolai Larin. Filming lasted about fifty days in which the final role of an emaciated Debyatayev is captured authentically by Priluchny by becoming like Debyatatev himself. The actor noted acting in this final stage was physically grueling with a voluntary diet regimen that lost him about 15 kilograms of weight. However by the final shot, the film was able to portray the historical truth. The actor was chosen as the ideal actor due to his connectivity with the film audience as well as his ability to convey sentimental human qualities associated with the hero pilot character while at the same time having a dogged resilient personality. The actor studied documentary chronicles of the war. In order to portray on screen how to operate aerial equipment, the actor took flight courses before acting began. The actor noted, "It's time to delve deeper into the history of this war and look at how it really happened from different sides." After footage appeared of the film, a report noted the actor is a portrait copy of the famous hero pilot.

Three Years???

Filming
Principal photography started in the pavilions of Lenfilm, Kronstadt, St.Petersburg and Kazan in February 2020. The veteran Soviet Union studio, Lenfilm barely survived the Soviet Union collapse has been survived by patrons such as Timur Bekmambetov's Bazelev Company who continued to film at the studio after the pandemic restrictions were lifted. The film method holds the distinction as the world's first vertical format blockbuster exhibited within mobile devices, Smart TV, vertical MTS TV online cinema formats. According to Quartz, the film heralds the age of vertically shot films. Individual takes commenced with pilot actors inside the cockpits of Second World War fighter jets using military equipment. The film making tried to show rustic warfare such as soiled hands or a rusty jet. The famous hijacked jet, Heinkel He 111 H-22 from the escape at Usedom island in Germany was used for the film. It was recreated at the technical complex of the VoenFilm film studio. Full-sized replica of Aerocobras jets were also used. On March 18, 2020 Timur Bekmambetov was looking for remote filming methods during the crisis caused by the COVID-19 in order not to stop production of the film. The film crew included German actors who couldn't come on the sets in Russia. Instead image stitching was used to get their action into the film.== ==

Innovative online methods were used after the live shooting postponement. The Bazelevs Company is known for cost-effective innovation. According to Fast Company, Bazelevs is the seventh most innovative and only film company in the world. Therefore they did not give up and instead explored new solutions to continue filming such as remote filming. First the film crew set up networking through Microsoft Teams. Then the crew reflected on how to translate their storyboards. Initially they were planning authentic live jet shooting in the atmosphere which originally finished filming half-way. However all the personnel was put on quarantine. Then the film crew had to innovate new techniques for aerial photography.

Virtual air cinematography
The aerial battles were shot using technology from the video game online military simulator War Thunder by Gaijin Entertainment. Bekmametov always had the incentive for gamer-pilots cinematography ever since a test flight in the past kindled his interest in computer flight simulators that he would regularly experiment with. The game studio became a liaison to the production crew who chose virtual photography for the aerial battles. Only previously have game engines been used in Hollywood. For V2, filming moved beyond the standard method and did not resort to usual green screens. The cameras will be able to film only the pilots while the director will be able to stop the "battle" 1200 km away from the sound stage in St.Petersburg where the pilots were seated in a place cockpit surrounded by LED screens. The crew remotely adjusts the shots from a production room in Kazan giving them flexibility in adjustments and refinements using VFX. The full replays with all the flight and other technical data was sent to the CG production team. Over thirty minutes of the film takes place in the sky. Live broadcast of the filming was shown on social networks. Gaijin Entertainment provided a climatic six-on-six dogfight that was rehearsed with one airplane piloted by Priluchny while all the other planes are flown by leading War Thunder gamers. The lead pilot was flown by a girl gamer. This film method allowed them the film to have a modern, technological, immersive platform with the viewers getting a glimpse of the air fight inside the jet. A report by Smotrim noted "For the first time in the history of cinema, a battle scene was filmed during an online computer game. The audience will see the intense battle of Soviet and German fighters from the inside. With each shot and dashing maneuver, it takes your breath away and literally presses you into the back of your chair."=== ===

Theatrical
The film was the opener of the 2021 Moscow International Film Festival held on 22 April 2021. On 27 April 2021, a memorial of Mikhail Devyatayev was held in Kazan. The film is co-produced by Bazelevs, and Voenfilm. MTS Media also co-produced the film, the first in their theatrical production catalogue from the network provider. The film had a wide release in Russia on 29 April 2021 through distributor Sony Pictures Productions and Releasing (SPPR). VTB Bank acted as an official partner for the film. The film became one of the main premieres in April 2021. A special pre-premiere was held at Moscow Poklonka cinema. The Victory Museum also opened in Moscow that has an exhibition "Pilot Mikhail Devyataev. Life as a Feat" in commemoration for the film and Victory Day. A red carpet session was held in Yekaterinburg with the VIP guest being Till Lindemann. For the first time during the conference at the State Duma, the politicians have raised support for the film which they say is an authentic description of their Soviet Union role models and heroes. Reports state the politicians of the State Duma including the President will see Devyatayev when they get the chance.== == The May 2021 program of Moskino includes screenings of the film. The film will be released in English with a different opener showing the Luftwaffe bombing raids against London.

Soundtrack
The score for the film is composed by Golden Eagle laureate Yuri Poteenko. The Soviet Union pre-war song (Любимый город) composed by Mark Bernes will have a modern reinterpretation in the film sung by Till Lindemann of the Rammstein Group. The German singer has an intricate history with the song ever since he heard of it as a child during the Soviet Union times while living in the city of Rostock in GDR. The idea to include the song was by the singer. The film crew noted a Favorite City theme song would be an apt leitmotif for the film. The music will also serve to "creates bridges between peoples." The song sounds both on the opening credits and in the course of the story. Russian singer Lev Leshchenko highlighted the performance of the song, "Favorite City" by Lindemann. The song was originally composed for the 1939 film The Fighters and has ever since been a classic rendition for Soviet Union singers. As part of the marketing for the film, actor Priluchny arranged a song flash mob for the title track which the actor himself sang for the film.

Critical response
Stas Tyrkin -

At the Moscow International Film Festival the film opened to critical acclaim. A review from Kommersant noted filming went online after its postponement due to COVID-19. The review wondered, "How to engage in air combat for those who spend their days driving a piston-engined fighter in a computer game? How can I feel the azure sky by drawing it on the computer pixel by pixel?" The final verdict is, "The authors of" Devyataev " coped with almost all these tasks. At least in the escape scene, you empathize with the main characters as much as you do with Ocean's friends, and in the aerial episodes, the pace and turns make you squeeze into a chair while your lips inevitably sing Bernes— the romance of heavenly providence, fortunately, dilutes the usual harsh colors of concentration camp films." Dmitry Kaystro for Smotrim states, "The audience has never seen such bright films. This is an amazing fusion, synthesis, where on the one hand – the power of a blockbuster, and on the other-the authenticity, lyricism and tenderness of Soviet war films." A review from Kino-Teatr noted, "Devyataev is undoubtedly also inspired by Soviet classics, in particular the film The Fighters with Mark Bernes." and the techniques used evoke "the sensations can be compared to those that arose from the scenes with the hero of Tom Hardy in Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk." In the film, "Favorite City" enhances the action, "Not only the song that the hero of Priluchny first purrs in the cockpit at the most tense moments, and then sings Till Lindemann." Another review from KinoReporter by Katya Zagvozdkina also affired the film is like Dunkirk that gives the audience vertigo. Reviewers from KinoReporter to Intermedia have applauded the performance of Pavel Priluchny: "But the pilot is incredibly close to all of us — and for this conscientiously played humanity-a low bow to Pavel Priluchny, the very fact of whose appearance in this film is already akin to a sign of quality." A review at Film.ru noted the ending of the film could have been been developed further noting the missing years of Debyatayev as an outcast in the Soviet Union.

Box office
The film's budget is 625 million rubles (~$10 million) with 200 million rubles of assistance given by State Film Fund. The film opened in the Russian box office in second place.