Movie Review: First Squad: The Moment of Truth

By Angela Roberts

First Squad poster

This Russian/Japanese co-production was a unique and interesting blend of Russian storytelling and Japanese animation. The artwork was created by Studio 4ºC, the studio behind such works as the Animatrix, and there is a flow and detail to the design of the characters that is reminiscent of more mature animes like Cowboy Bebop. No big-eyed characters flouncing about (not that there’s anything wrong with that); the characters and setting, based on popular Soviet-era propaganda comics, are infused with a Russian austerity that makes for a film with compelling imagery.

It is 1942, and the War has stalled on the Eastern front. The Ahnenerbe, the occult wing of the SS, plot to resurrect a Russian-hating Baron and his army from their frozen grave so that he may lay waste to the Red Army. But their Russian counterparts, the 6th Division, find out and determine that the only solution is to resurrect their own dead warriors, the teenage soldiers of the First Squad. They have the technology to make the trip to the underworld, but they need the gifted young psychic, Nadya, last survivor of the Squad, to go retrieve her friends. As the film opens, however, Nadya is a shell-shocked amnesiac travelling with a group of wartime entertainers who get massacred along with a full platoon in an air raid scene that beautifully introduces Nadya and her psychic powers. Nadya is rescued by a hermit monk who introduces her to the threat of the Baron and sends her away with instructions to find a general whose existence is secret, the leader of the 6th Division, before being assassinated by twin German assassins who dog Nadya’s steps through most of the film. Nadya makes her way to Moscow and eventually to her former colleagues in 6th Division, who jog her memory, and send her to the underworld to find the other members of First Squad. Nadya finds her friends and discovers the Baron gearing up for war. They must stop him from killing a Russian officer before he leads a charge against the German army, the “Moment of Truth” that Nadya has foreseen that if altered could turn the tide of the war and of history itself. Moments of Truth are significant events that change history, and one of them is at a battle at the very lake the Baron emerges from. Unable to stop the Baron from escaping the underworld, the First Squad appear at the battle and manage to stop the Baron and defeat his army, allowing history to take its course. Their work done, Nadya’s friends vanish.

This synopsis, when written out all together, sounds very cohesive, yet the film’s plot is actually laid out in a more episodic manner, due to the presence of a sometimes interesting and often frustrating series of mock-documentary clips intercut with the animation. The live action clips are of “experts” talking about events or aspects of the anime plot. They supposedly are meant to attach a believable alternate history to the story, and indeed, are so realistic that one sometimes forgets that actors are speaking. They seem a strange narrative choice, however, because the clips are often distracting and interrupt the flow of the story. The documentary clips work best in the film when they refer to the animated events without spoiling the audience. An example of this is the veteran soldier describing his experience of seeing Nadya riding to Moscow on a white horse. Here, the clip meshes seamlessly and creates an interesting perspective on the anime. But most of the time, the clips distract from and overpower the anime, and one wonders why the anime needs live corroboration at all. I wasn’t sure what the mock-documentary clips really added to the film.

Another unfortunate weakness was in the plotting and character development. Part of this is caused by the disjointed storytelling and short feature length. But there was also a sense of much being withheld. Threads are introduced and never explored; ex. Nadya’s love affair with her First Squad comrade Leo, the death of her parents, and Nadya’s work for 6th Division in the year since First Squad was killed. All of these details seemed to have been cut for time, and obviously left for later sequels. A lot of this anime seemed like a teaser for the planned forthcoming manga and features. This was unfortunate since these details would have allowed for more insight into Nadya’s character, and made the anime a bit more interesting too. Nadya as a heroine is poorly developed; she’s cold, passive except when finally called on to fight, child-like in many ways, and her actions all seem instinctual because we don’t really see her reasons or even a genuine concern for the cause she’s working for. It’s like she never really gets over her shell shock until perhaps the very end. None of the characters are well explored, and one might wonder if that might have been accomplished if less time had been spent on the mock-documentary clips.

Where First Squad’s strengths lie is in the animation. The imagery of war-era Moscow, the underworld, and Nadya’s sub-conscious, is surreal and amazing. The fight scenes are impressive; the chase scene between the twins and Nadya was exciting; the final battle scene was masterfully created. More of this along with a deeper commitment to the anime’s characters and plot would have produced a superb film.

First Squad: The Moment of Truth was a fascinating experience but ultimately dissatisfying because of the reasons listed above and its open-ended conclusion. It’s clear that more is intended to come. The only question is whether or not there is enough in this feature to keep the audience’s interest.

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