USSR's The Cranes are Flying

The Cranes Are Flying (1957) USSR 91 minutes. Directed by Mikhail Kalatozov

A heart wrenching love story set during World War II, it divides Veronika (Tatyana Samojlova) and Boris (Aleksey Batalov), lovers who planned a long life together, leaving Veronika to her fate with Boris?s cousin, Mark (Aleksandr Shvorin). Kalatozov paints with light and shadow making the black and white film seem as if it was vivid Technicolor. Exquisite and complex THE CRANES ARE FLYING morphs quickly from a basic love story to a stunning love letter to the Soviet people, a true understanding of their love and loss during World War II. Coolidge description

Veronica and Boris are blissfully in love, until the eruption of World War II tears them apart. Boris is sent to the front lines?and then communication stops. Meanwhile, Veronica tries to ward off spiritual numbness while Boris's draft-dodging cousin makes increasingly forceful overtures. Winner of the Palme d'Or at the 1958 Cannes Film Festival, The Cranes Are Flying is a superbly crafted drama, bolstered by stunning cinematography and impassioned performances. Criterion Collection

Probably the best Soviet film made between Ivan the Terrible (1945) and Andrei Rublev (1969), it had a fresh perspective on the sacrifices and losses of war.

At a time when the American cinema interpretation of World War II was in patriotic and heroic movies like To Hell and Back, The Cranes Are Flying was different. To appreciate the Soviet perspective, it has be remembered that twenty million Russians died due to the war, including a very high percentage of young males. It was a catastrophic event that brought death to most Russian families, and forced them to relocate as far as Siberia to escape the advancing German forces. Filmsgraded.com

Mikhail Kalatozov?s tale of love during wartime has earned its landmark status several times over. The Cranes Are Flying is anything but a museum piece; rather, it?s the kind of timeless, devastating melodrama that can leave the most jaded of audience members moist-eyed. Time Out

For those keeping score, The Cranes Are Flying got a 94% rating at Rotten Tomatoes.

Hope to see you there and then its off to a local restuarant for our group discussion,
Tom