Another alum of The Great Escape, Robert Graf played Werner the Ferret.  He played opposite of Jim Garner, a great in his own right. What made Graf stand out was that he knew he had terminal cancer at the time of the filming and soldiered on.  Graf acted in some other movies and TV. Cancer took him a few years after The Great Escape.  Truly sad given his talents. He did father a child who has carried on his work, in spirit.

Based on a novel by Anton Chekhov and set in modern day Russia, this is the story of two Russian soldiers captured by break away mountain people aka Chechens.  One soldier is a crusty, cynical old soldier, the other is young, naive and scared.  The story centers around their confinement and the actions that result from the capture.  The ending is perhaps the best in cinema.  But the movie is loaded with greatness, conflict, abrupt twists, and some real top notch scenery footage.  It was filmed 50 miles away from where this same war was being fought (and is still I think). It was good enough for a Cannes.  And welcome to the Caucuses.