H. M. Deserters

In the final months of the Great War, in 1918, a confident Oberleutnant von Nogay arrives at a forgotten garrison in the Hungarian provinces. The new deputy commander dreams of turning a random mix of nationalities, malingerers, and soldiers bored of the front into a model company of the Austro-Hungarian army. What interests him most, however, are those he suspects of political insubordination. Quickly, Jan Kaniowski—known as Kania—a young Pole with dazzling cunning and a talent for leading everyone astray, falls under his suspicion. Kania, posing as a victim of a war wound, wins the trust of the owner of the local brothel, which grants him free access to her beautiful daughter, Mitzi. Meanwhile, a completely different plan is taking shape in the soldier’s mind—one far from serving the monarchy: together with the cheerful Hungarian Benedek, he prepares a daring escape known by the codename “Featherbed.” This operation becomes a chance for both deserters to reclaim their freedom—at a time when the old empire is already creaking at the seams, and loyalty to the Austro-Hungarian army is often the last thing anyone cares about.