Invisible Enemy
Showtimes
Mark and Harri are two Finnish men who have volunteered to fight in Ukraine. Their return to civilian life proves difficult: PTSD symptoms, clinging to the emotional extremes caused by war, and the struggle to find meaning in life at times feel overwhelming. In trauma-informed therapy, these symptoms are processed and their experiences revisited.
The film focuses primarily on Mark’s and Harri’s therapy, as well as on footage they filmed themselves on the battlefield. Muddy ground surrounded by bare tree trunks, dead bodies, bunkers, bleak shelters, and longing for loved ones back home tell the story of the reality of war. Both men also have young children of their own. Death is not an option for them, because a child needs a father. However, the mission in Ukraine also feels crucial to them.
One of the men meets an elderly war veteran to hear how he continued his life after the terror he experienced. The story of Mark and Harri shows the audience in a tangible way how the war in Ukraine has changed us all. It has brought war close again and crippled hundreds of thousands of men and women, both physically and mentally. Even when one survives a war, it changes people irreversibly.
Salla Nazareko (translated by Elina Huttunen)
Filmmakers Ann-Mari Leinonen and Einari Paakkanen will attend the screening on 5 Feb.
