One World 2016 review - restless Ukraine - HOW WE BECAME MILITARY VOLUNTEERS

Directed by - Larysa Artiugina, Oleksandra Chuprina (Ukraine)

When Russia waged a war of aggression against Ukraine, its bullying tactics provoked a passionate reaction of resistance among ordinary Ukranian people. Many of them felt the need to do something about it, took matters into their own hands, and voluntarily joined the Ukranian army, fuelled by the wish to protect their country. 

How We Became Military Volunteers is a film that humanizes this particular topic. It is a documentary contructed with plenty of talking heads interviews with the volunteers, that uses a search for their individual motivation as a starting point to expand on their anecdotes of their experiences on the frontline, to provide a more complete portrayal of the situation. These interviews are strengthened by footage that follows them in their everyday activities. These go from them having lunch, offered by locals from their farmland produce, or their training camp sessions. Some crudely shot footage even takes us right into the conflict. In one particular sequence, a man shows the cameras some drawins sent in by Ukranian children, all revealing nationalist sentiments. Children, for many of the volunteers, as a prime source of inspiration. One of the things revealed in the film is that the average age of a volunteer is 40 years old, most of them urged by a wish to make Ukraine a safer haven for future generations. 

Not much time is wasted on the backstory, so a little familiarity with the subject of Ukraine's recent history and ongoing struggle is advised for anyone watching. 

Despite the documentary's simplicity, directors Larysa Artiugina and Oleksandra Chuprina try to add a little poetry to the mix. The composition of the frames of the talking head footage looks quite nice. A young pianist, who is also a volunteers, provides the music score to the film. This also brings in some type of poetry and softens the blow of the otherwise staunch Ukranian nationalist stance and viewpoint that dictates the nature of How We Became Volunteers. Some of the lingo used by the protagonists of the documentary may come across as being too harsh to a neutral viewer. But there are two main reasons why the one sided nature of the film is noteworthy. The first reason is that it opposes the underwhelming, confusing and confused international coverage of the conflict. The second is that when it comes to this topic, there really is no other acceptable viewpoint.