“Butterfly Vision”, a Ukrainian survivor, neither heroine nor victim

“Butterfly Vision”, film by Maksym Nakonechnyi.

© Anastasia Vlasova / Nour Films

Text by: Sophie Torlotin Follow

1 min

When cinema and a fiction film shed light on the news... The Ukrainian film "Butterfly Vision" was shot between the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021, therefore before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

This first feature film by Ukrainian filmmaker Maksym Nakonechnyi tells the story of the Donbass war which has pitted Ukraine against pro-Russian separatists and Russia since 2014. A conflict similar to the one that has been raging for eight months.

This film shows the difficult repair of a Ukrainian prisoner of war.

Advertising

Read more

"Butterfly", "Butterfly", is the military nickname of Lilia, an aerial reconnaissance specialist captured by pro-Russian separatists in Donbass.

The beginning of the film seizes her during her release, thanks to an exchange of prisoners.

How does one return to civilian life, to life itself, after suffering abuse?

Maksym Nakonechnyi shows the journey of this female soldier who refuses to be considered a victim.

In doing so, he hides nothing of the complexities and gray areas of his country.

Ukrainian women engaged in war

The Ukrainian filmmaker had the idea for this film while working on a documentary showing Ukrainian women engaged in war.

However,

is neither naturalist nor voyeuristic.

The young 31-year-old director wisely incorporates sequences of fake social media reports into his staging, as well as drone shots that reflect Lilia's paradoxical situation well.

Neither heroine nor victim, she wants to choose her path, a survivor who rebuilds herself and refuses revenge and despair.

Newsletter

Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox

I subscribe

Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application

• Ukraine

• Movie theater

• Culture