‘My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow’ Review: An Intimate Documentary Epic About Journalists at War

variety.com:

Siddhant Adlakha At nearly five-and-a-half hours — further divided into five massive chapters — Julia Loktev’s “My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow” is less like typical docu-journalism, and more akin to Tolstoy’s “War and Peace.” The first volume in a two-part series about independent reporters, it lays out its twists and turns early on: At some point during its runtime, Russia will launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Capturing this war and its consequences was never Loktev’s intent, but the film’s evolution (both as a narrative, and as a DIY production) is a vital part of its text.

What began as a piece about Loktev’s friends and colleagues being branded “foreign agents” by the Russian state evolves in real time.

It’s even forced to switch protagonists at one point, owing the mounting logistical challenges caused by the ongoing conflict.