 The film was released on 1 November 2007, to coincide with the celebrations of National Unity Day on 4 November that marks the expulsion of Polish troops from Moscow.The film is set in Russia during the Time of Troubles, a period of civil disorder, famine and Polish invasion that followed the fall of the Rurik dynasty, which had ruled Russia in various capacities from 862 to 1598.The protagonist, Andrey, had been a servant at Tsar Boris Godunov's court while he was a boy, where he became the sole witness to the murder of the Tsar's family by the order of plotting boyars.