Review for ‘‘Boots on the Ground’’ by Maxim Chuzha

Boots on the Ground, by Maxim Chuzha, is more than just a football documentary, acting as a chronicle of the Ukrainian people's persistence during the war, as well as the international community's support, all through the stories of football players and games.

The short documentary utilizes Artem's - FC Vorskla's midfielder's - personal story as a throughline, but quickly expands to the wider changes in the Ukrainian football world during the war, to other individual stories, and finally to the grand, symbolic role the sport has played in maintaining morale across and beyond the nation. The wide array of people interviewed, from within and outside the pitch, gives a sense of community, family even, and of collective effort to not only survive, but do so in dignified terms, to maintain a life worth living in the face of hell on earth.

Technically, the short holds nothing back, sporting effective camerawork, crystal clear images, beautiful colors and cinematography that both immerses the viewer in these struggling peoples' reality and leaves them stunned at the beauty of everything from the football arenas of Ukraine to the country's untamed nature. Every aspect of production screams professionalism and high quality in everything from lighting to makeup and sound. What is more, the photo material and footage from the event detailed towards the end of the documentary is both illuminating and emotional.

All in all, few documentaries - and fewer produced in such hard times as those Ukraine is experiencing - manage such a high standard of visual storytelling, made all the more impressive given the dark and difficult subject matter. Chuzha, Kulakovsky, the rest of the team, his family, and everyone else affiliated with the sport bring a beautiful, inspiring tale to life in the most visually impressive way possible.