After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, over 15 million people were forced to evacuate their home country to seek refuge in Poland and nearby regions. In the Rearview takes viewers in the backseat of filmmaker Maciek Hamela’s car as he picks up families and takes them out of the war zone. The subjects in this documentary are people who are leaving everything that they know and love behind, whether it is a beloved cow or a family member who can’t make it on a long trip. Without much footage of the war itself, the firsthand accounts from the passengers in the car are enough to paint a picture of the terrors that they’ve endured and their need to find a better place to stay.

With Limited Equipment, ‘In the Rearview’ Manages to Say a Lot with a Minimalist Approach
Image via TIFF

Although Hamela didn’t have any prior experience making documentaries or any onscreen projects before this one, In the Rearview shows that simply enabling people to share their lived experiences in front of the camera is enough to make a story worth telling. The many refugees that the filmmaker had in his vehicle throughout the film don’t get an in-depth focus on their personal lives and backstories before the war. All the information that we know about them is what they choose to share in their limited time frame onscreen. Still, what they do say is enough to bring audiences to tears.

“I’m leaving you with what is most precious to me,” a father tells the driver before letting go of his two small children and his wife. He shares that he will be joining the army on the following day, with a high chance of never seeing his family again. This father isn’t the only person shown in the documentary saying goodbye to loved ones before they leave the country. Later on, a grandmother hugs her daughter and grandchildren before they get inside the car. When her grandson says “I love you,” it is heartbreaking.

In addition to the farewells, some passengers open up about their experiences getting tortured by Russian soldiers, having guns pointed at their heads, and children casually speaking about war as if it were something normal in their everyday lives (which in a sense it is). Although we don’t see any of these events happen onscreen other than a few scenes showcasing burnt cars and multiple soldiers with missiles, it is evident that all of these encounters have left scars on each one of them. These stories also help people who haven’t been directly affected by the war to put random images from news outlets to actual faces and names.

Filmmaker Maciek Hamela Shares an Inside Glimpse at the Evacuation Process By Being Part of It
Image via TIFF

As previously mentioned, Hamela serves two purposes here. One is to direct this documentary and the other is to pick up these people at a specific location and find the best way to get them to Poland without any mishaps. At the start of the film, he is driving and helping a family evacuate when Russian soldiers stop the car to look at documents before letting them go. After this experience, Hamela tries his best to evade any Russian-dominated routes from then on.

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He is also responsible for organizing pick-up stops and evaluating which families will be able to fit into the car for each of the routes. In one instance, the driver even tells a mother that there might not be enough space for her and her two children in the car. If he didn’t allow her to take one of her children in her lap, they wouldn’t have left together. Despite the circumstances not being ideal, Hamela gets out of his comfort zone to help as many people as he can while he documents every trip.

The Shots May Be Repetitive, but the Stories Told in These Drives are Never the Same
Image via TIFF

Given that the director uses a handheld camera to capture the passengers in the backseat, there are only so many angles and shots that you can do inside a car. Even though the shots are repetitive, and the footage is raw, the people who get into the car and what they’ve been through are ever-changing throughout the documentary. They might all share the same goal of leaving Ukraine before it is too late, but the reasons that they have to get out are different.

The methodical process of picking up refugees and leaving them at the Polish border is similar to the straightforward and simplistic nature of the shooting process here. The cameras are rolling before the passengers get inside the car and stay on until they arrive at their destination. Towards the end of the documentary, some even reunite with family and friends they hadn’t seen in a long time. Yet when the camera goes back to the car, it is empty, signifying that the process of volunteers helping refugees escape is cyclical. Although some people were able to get out safely, many others are waiting to get picked up but are probably struggling to pay for a driver or aren’t in the conditions to exit the country.

Overall, In the Rearview isn’t a typical documentary about a group of people narrating war events while standing still in a studio as footage of the war plays out. It is instead shot simplistically, showing that even a low-budget project can relay a message with the few tools at its reach. A handheld camera and a group of people who are leaving their home country after experiencing war firsthand are a combination that makes this documentary easy to digest and much more intimate. Viewers aren’t seeing the before and after of these pick-ups and drop-offs, but they are witnessing the process in between where groups of people are willing to share experiences that are still fresh in their minds. It also shows that they are uncertain of what is to come, but they are strong enough to power through whatever obstacles they might have to face for the sake of their loved ones.

Grade: B

The Big Picture

The documentary In the Rearview tells the stories of Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war in a minimalist, low-budget style. The film captures the emotional farewells and harrowing experiences of the passengers, offering a personal and intimate perspective on the war. Filmmaker Maciek Hamela plays a dual role as both director and driver, highlighting the cyclical nature of the evacuation process and the ongoing struggle for many refugees.

In the Rearview had its North American premiere at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival.