As Russia’s war in Ukraine approaches its second anniversary, leading Russian director Aleksey German Jr. (“House Arrest,” “Under Electric Clouds”), is currently giving “Air,” his state-funded WWII thriller, a commercial release in Russian cinemas. With ferocious action and cruel detail, “Air” has been called out for being a patriotic film. It depicts the struggles of a group of female pilots to be allowed to fight alongside male colleagues on the Russo-German front lines in 1943-44. Grudgingly, they are given their chance. While many die along the way, those that survive buck the established patriarchy and gain the recognition they crave...