A Belarusian teenager joins the Soviet partisan resistance in 1943. Within days, he witnesses atrocities that take away his childhood, his face and finally his ability to feel joy. It's the most emotionally devastating war film ever made.
Come and See is a 1985 drama and war film directed by Elem Klimov. This breakdown covers 5 techniques (2 editing, 1 sound, 1 narrative and 1 cinematography), each with the scene where you can see it. If you like how it is made, The Revenant uses several of the same techniques.
Holding the camera on violence for much longer than is comfortable, with no cut to let you look away. Most films only show a quick glimpse.
How this film uses it
Klimov doesn't let you escape through a cut. The burning of the village, the crowds herded into the barn and the aftermath are all filmed at full length. It feels like a moral duty. Klimov insists that you look at it yourself, and the discomfort is the point.
Where to see it
The village massacre sequence. Each shot runs so long that you never get the relief of moving on.
Mixing battle sound the way a soldier would hear it, with chaotic, physical noise coming from every direction. Nothing is tidied up for your comfort, so you feel inside the fight.
How this film uses it
After the German air attack on the forest, Flyora's hearing is damaged. The film's sound follows what he hears. Dialogue goes muffled, background sound distorts and the soundtrack imitates tinnitus, a constant ringing in the ears. You live through the aftermath of the bombing with him, because the film has damaged your hearing too.
Where to see it
The air attack in the forest. The sound drops to a high-pitched ringing as Flyora's hearing fails. The scene gets distorted for you in the same way.
Showing a character's inner change through their body: weight, posture, movement, injury or recovery. The body becomes a visible record of what happened to them and what it cost.
How this film uses it
Alexei Kravchenko was 14 when filming began. Klimov shot the film in story order over 9 months. A hypnotist was called in to prepare him for the extreme scenes. Kravchenko kept a severe diet and lived with real hunger and fatigue, and special silver greasepaint was used to turn his hair grey. Flyora's aged face in the final scenes is the face of a boy who has spent months in the conditions the film shows.
Where to see it
Flyora's face in the film's final act. You can see how much he has aged, and it's a plain physical fact.
Cutting real documentary or archive footage into a fictional story, such as authentic records of wartime atrocities. It grounds the fiction in history and blurs the line between cinema and the record.
How this film uses it
At the climax, Flyora shoots a portrait of Hitler lying in a puddle. A montage of real historical footage plays in reverse, back to Hitler as a baby on his mother's lap, and Flyora stops shooting and cries. The technique insists that the film is a historical record and that real people stand behind the story.
Where to see it
The final montage. The fictional shooting is intercut with real documentary footage played in reverse. Here the film says openly what it thinks about history.
Moving the story into a remote house, forest or landscape where no help can arrive. The quiet surroundings stop being a refuge and add to the dread.
How this film uses it
The Belarusian forest is where the partisans hide and where Flyora finds Glasha. At times, it's almost unbearably beautiful. Nevertheless, it's also where bodies turn up, where German forces advance and where safety disappears without warning. The beauty and the horror sit side by side and never settle. No place is safe.
Where to see it
The bog sequence. The forest offers no escape. Beauty and terror share the same space at the same moment.
Questions
Come and See: quick answers
What filmmaking techniques does Come and See use?
CineCode breaks down 5 techniques in Come and See (1985): Sustained Atrocity Duration, Immersive Combat Sound Design, Physical Transformation as Arc, Documentary Footage Integration and Isolated Setting as Threat.
Who directed Come and See?
Elem Klimov directed Come and See, released in 1985.
What films are similar to Come and See?
Films that share techniques with Come and See include The Revenant (2015), Warfare (2025), Hacksaw Ridge (2016), Saving Private Ryan (1998).
