When Russia began its illegal invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Toronto director Anastasia Trofimova was working for the CBC news bureau in Moscow. When the bureau shut down, she stayed behind and started documenting war resisters in Moscow. A chance encounter with a soldier on leave from the front opened the door for her to unofficially embed with a Russian battalion deployed to the frontlines of occupied Ukraine over a seven-month period in 2023. The film offers a rare glimpse into the daily experiences and shifting perspectives of rank-and-file soldiers, who are ill-prepared and increasingly disillusioned by the war. With each gruelling day, the reasons for being there only become more obscure. This Canadian-French co-production premiered at the Venice Film Festival in August 2024 and screenings scheduled the following month at the Toronto International Film Festival were disrupted by protests. World broadcast premiere.