The prying major (Margus Prange) has his eye on Roman, and never misses an opportunity to remind him the KGB is watching. Pressed breathlessly against each other in a forest trench, they erupt into a passionate kiss once in the clear.Įach rapturous high is followed by a heart-stopping low, and as soon as they consummate their love they are interrupted by an ominous knock on the door. After a trip to the opera, which gives the film its title, the couple is almost caught at a checkpoint, though it’s unclear by whom and why they must hide. Another swimming scene, this one more erotic, is shot from afar, under the watchful eye of an unknown meddler who brings an anonymous report up the line. The opening scene’s drama repeats itself almost cyclically, with the stakes climbing higher each time. The film runs on a steady rhythm of danger and pleasure, or tension and release. After many charged glances and rousing brushes with danger, they give in to their desires with little resistance. Intrigued by Roman’s skillful flying and smooth confidence, Sergey is invited to his private dark room when the men discover a shared interest in photography. He shows promise as a pilot, however, and is assigned as convoy to a newly arrived, hotshot lieutenant named Roman (Oleg Zagorodnii. A fresh-faced recruit with his head in the clouds, the gentle Sergey ( Tom Prior) nurses dreams of becoming an actor. The horseplay is interrupted when two uniformed men point guns their way, a stark reminder that a military base is no place for fun. The film’s tragic throughline won’t break any molds, but with smoldering performances by its two strapping young leads, the target audience is unlikely to care.ĭespite the heat of its title, “Firebird” begins in the water as three lithe bodies splash playfully in a dark sea. Taking an altogether different tack, the stately period drama “ Firebird” tells the true story of an ill-fated military romance between two men in Soviet-occupied Estonia during the late 1970s and early ’80s.īased on a memoir by Sergey Fetisov, the steamy Cold War drama honors this lost chapter of gay history with a handsome rendering that only occasionally stumbles under the weight of historical accuracy. David France’s “Welcome to Chechnya” documented the horrific genocide being waged against LGBTQ people in what is now a Russian Republic, a terrifying sign of what could lay in store for LGBTQ Ukrainians. Not that we needed a reminder, but Russia’s recent human rights violations - while flagrant - are sadly not a new phenomenon.