Butterfly Vision

After two months as a prisoner of war, Ukrainian military Lilia returns home to her husband and family. But she cannot escape her trauma, and on top of that turns out to be pregnant from one of her captivators. Yet, Lilia refuses to be a victim. Raw drama, impressively acted. 

Ukrainian drone expert Lilia – nickname ‘Butterfly’ – is freed after having spent two months as a prisoner of pro-Russian separatists in the Donbas region. Her celebrated homecoming is shown on live television and she is a national hero, but soon reality sinks in. Her over-worrying mother has no idea how to comfort her, and her husband Tokha doesn’t know how to connect.  

When Lilia turns out to be pregnant from being raped while imprisoned, she seemingly withdraws into herself. Meanwhile, Tokha gets in deep with an ultra-right vigilante group attacking Roma camps. But even though Lilia appears stoic and depressed, she is determined to liberate herself. Shown in the official selection at Cannes 2022. With a very impressive performance by Rita Burkovska, who manages to visualize both Lilia’s mental torment and her determination with an understated anguish and vulnerability.