Firebird

Black thorns and roses...

..smiles and tears.

They're sown together

and grow so near.

Dima, wait!

-I win. -All right.

Come. Let's go back.

Oh, relax.

Sergey?

Sergey?

Enjoy yourself for once.

One more time. Please.

Race you to the rocks.

OK, but you're going to lose again. Ready?

Luisa, quick.

Halt. Identify yourself.

Stop or I'll shoot.

Popov? It's Sidorov.

Sidorov?

You again.

Kurilka, 0900 hours.

Next time, I'll shoot you.

Oh! Volodja.

Sergeant Popov's easy. Two packs of cigarettes.

Life's about who you know.

We can't all have your connections.

You could have my connections, Luisa. You could have them all.

Oh! Oh, bloody rocks!

Get up!

Fucking lazy rats.

Slow. Stupid.

Useless little rats.

Faster. Faster.

Attention.

At ease.

Comrade Colonel, second squadron ready to manoeuvre.

You know, one day the colonel

is going to open his flight reports

and find your human-anatomy diagrams.

It's the hardest exam.

Then one more to go - scientific communism.

I'm not going to have a life.

It'll be worth it in the end.

Let's do the morning report.

Selenov, 1:34.

Tokarev, 1:12

You won't reconsider the colonel's offer?

Give me one good reason.

Two good reasons.

You could make a career for yourself here,

rather than stack hay in the middle of nowhere.

What else is there?

Sergey. Luisa. Wait.

Sergey, take our photograph, for posterity.

Not again.

-I'm going to the canteen. -Please.

Smile in this one.

Comrade Lieutenant.

We were ordered to take this photograph

for the weekly journal.

At ease.

Let me take one of all of you.

Move to your right.

Which way to the commander's office?

Comrade Lieutenant, I'll show you.

Since the Nato forces increased surveillance of our border,

I've got four Migs up in the air around the clock.

We now assume each B-52 is carrying

several thermonuclear devices.

Should just one slip through,

they will be on the direct air corridor to Leningrad.

It will be your duty to prevent this from happening.

Understood?

Yes, Comrade Colonel.

Welcome, Lieutenant Matvejev.

Dismissed.

Send him in.

So, young man,

I hear you have declined my offer to stay on.

What are your plans?

I will return home to find work, Comrade Colonel.

Very well.

Take the Uazik and drive the lieutenant

to the officers' block.

You'll be receiving some additional duties

in your final weeks.

Yes, Comrade Colonel.

Orderly.

Yes, Comrade Major.

No, he has not returned.

I will report immediately, Comrade Major.

Here.

I'm afraid there are no facilities

to develop photographs here, Comrade Lieutenant.

Now there are.

You develop photographs too?

Yes, I do.

I'll finish it myself.

Yes, Comrade Lieutenant.

Permission to leave?

Granted.

Private.

Thank you, Comrade Lieutenant.

Matvejev.

Graduating with first-class honours, eh?

Don't they say those who do well at flight school

have problems handling their equipment in the sky?

I was told that one particular pilot here

has problems in that department.

Time will tell.

Shit! Volkov is on duty tonight.

He woke up the second unit at 0300 hours

because he found a cigarette butt outside their barracks.

He made them run 10km into the forest, dig it a grave

and give it a full burial with honours.

What a dick.

What?

At least someone's getting it tonight.

Hey, Matvejev.

Kissed my chances goodbye.

Now I see why she didn't come swimming with us.

What's the matter with you?

I told you. "Like a sister"?

You are in love.

Sergey, do something about it.

Before it's too late.

The safety of the squadron is paramount.

There will come a day when you have to choose between

missing your target or saving your wingman's life.

There's a fine line between bravery and recklessness.

Tomorrow, we will proceed

with the high-altitude attack scenario.

That is all.

Private Serebrennikov?

Comrade Lieutenant.

At ease.

Is Luisa here?

No, she went to human resources, Comrade Lieutenant.

That's fine. I'll come by later.

Comrade Lieutenant...

permission to ask you a question.

Would you have time to develop some photographs later?

You're too soft.

Harder. Harder. Not one spot left.

A love letter from another admirer of yours.

It's been opened again.

Mm. Must be such a fun job,

reading all the thrilling letters from your mother.

Come on. We're playing durak in the Lenin room.

Sergey.

Get out of your fantasy world.

Maybe later.

Take it by the corner...

..and gently...

..place it in the water tray.

Like this, Comrade Lieutenant?

That's better.

And call me Roman.

You...

really see other people, Sergey.

You capture their essence, their soul.

I search for something deeper...

..but I can't quite grasp it.

How do you mean?

When you take a photo...

..there's something in that very moment

which is gone forever.

A moment that will never be there again.

Like a ghost escaping this world.

I didn't know you were a philosopher.

I think we need a drink.

So I gave him a lower score.

The radio was practically melting with his anger.

He was yelling and threatening like I'd slept with his wife.

You know it?

Tchaikovsky.

When I first heard it, I was 14.

My best friend Misha was in it.

I've never seen a real ballet.

How could you be so uncultured coming from Orel?

I've seen a lot of theatre before being locked up here.

Now there's no chance.

Let's check the photos.

Steady there, Private.

I should be getting back.

I shouldn't even be here.

You'd better sleep it off here.

No, I-I can't...

I'll tell the duty officer that I needed you at the hangar.

No, no, no. I have to go.

I can't stay.

Listen. If you turn up at the barracks like this,

you'll be cleaning the toilets for a week.

Oh, shit.

Put your fucking coat on!

Why can't you dress yourself like any other pig here?

Lebedev.

Did I give you permission to leave the barracks last night?

No, Comrade Sergeant.

Then why the fuck were you smoking outside?