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1. They Fought for the Homeland (1975)
They Fought for the Homeland is a cinematic masterpiece adapted from the novel of the same name by writer Mikhail Sholokhov, exploring the theme of the 'Great Patriotic War.' The film depicts the Soviet infantry battalion that sacrificed a large number of soldiers while fighting against Germany in July 1942, subsequently retreating towards Stalingrad. Despite facing disdain and coldness from the civilians who believed the soldiers abandoned them to the Germans, these soldiers displayed remarkable resilience during the retreat. Though withdrawn, they suffered significant losses due to enemy offensives. The film portrays the pain of the retreat order, the agony for the nation's fate, the sorrow for comrades' sacrifices, and the anguish of being hated and shunned. Yet, 'They Fought for the Homeland' in every circumstance.
Considered one of the finest cinematic works on the theme of the Great Patriotic War, adapted from Mikhail Sholokhov's incomplete novel, the talented director Sergey Bondarchuk successfully transformed it into an outstanding cinematic piece, maintaining Sholokhov's crucial principles of portraying ordinary, humble soldiers, even fearful at the mention of 'war.' Sergey Bondarchuk, with creative ingenuity and keen artistic insight, constructed a battlefield filled with vivid colors of death, smoke, and amidst the gunfire's devastation, the spirit of optimistic soldiers still shimmered. The film captures the essence of life amidst the vast, picturesque meadows along the Don River, the simple and resilient lives of Kozak farmers, and the hardships they endure between their two battlefronts. The movie brings together the most outstanding faces of Soviet cinema in the 60s-70s, featuring luminaries like Vasily Shukshin, Vyacheslav Tikhonov, Yuri Nikulin, and Sergey Bondarchuk.
2. Moscow, Unbelieving Tears (1981)
Moscow Unbelieves the Tears is a romantic drama directed by Vladimir Menshov, released in 1979. The film won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. It narrates the stories of three girlfriends who move from the provinces to Moscow in the late 1950s, each with a unique destiny. Antonina, content as a painter, marries a Moscow worker, leading a simple life. Ludmila, on the contrary, sees Moscow life as a grand lottery where she can luck into marrying a wealthy, famous man, and she is willing to do whatever it takes.
Her husband, a renowned badminton player, is initially gentle but succumbs to alcohol. The central character, Katerina, a determined girl, works as a mechanic and studies to enter university. Katerina single-handedly raises her child while working and studying. Twenty years later, her former lover, now a failed family man and a television cameraman, coincidentally encounters Katerina, now a successful woman and director of a large conglomerate, living with her matured daughter Aleksandra. Rejecting Rodia's plea, Katerina has found her true half...
In 1980, the film Moscow Unbelieves the Tears proudly won the Oscar, the most prestigious film award globally. Initially, the script was a competition entry for the Moscow theme. The script's author gave it to the rookie director Vladimir Menshov to read and suggested making a film because renowned directors had previously rejected it.
In the first year of release, 85 million people in the Soviet Union flocked to theaters to watch the film. Over 100 countries bought the rights, and in the United States, it topped the revenue charts, purchased for $50,000 and earning $2.5 million in ticket sales within a year—a substantial amount at that time. Notably, the film's production cost was only 550,000 rubles. The film was screened worldwide, with grand premiere events, but one person was always absent—the director Menshov...
