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Ballad of a Soldier - Criterion Collection (DVD)
$26.96
"The bottom line of this underrated masterpiece (well received upon its initial release in the 50s to be later dismissed as ""Soviet propaganda"" by a western public who often confounded cynism with truth) is that sometimes you've just to do your duty whatever the circumstances, but this doesn't means you'll lose your soul. It's the difference between blind obedience and conscious duty - something that today is often difficult to tell apart. The story is simple. Aliosha, a young Red Army ""frontnik"" almost by chance saves the life of many of his comrades. As award, he's granted a 4 day leave so he can get to see his mother back home - incidentally, this was the only way a Red Army's soldier could hope to get ANY kind of leave! During the trip he meet a young girl, and the two fall in love. But time is running out, and the war is never too far away. Aliosha will finally get to see his mother, but with little time left to stay with her. The final scene is heartbreaking (and I'm not someone who get really emotional when seeing a movie), even if you aren't aware that, with a mean frontline life expectancy of little more than two weeks, chances that Aliosha will see his mother again are pretty slim. This is a simple, effective demonstration of the cinematic power of a linear and powerful story. Very good cinematography, great perfomances and a solid editing make this a winner even for today's audiences. If you want to know what's like to be in a war where (at least!) twenty millions of your compatriots have been killed, your country ravaged and the very existence of your culture put in danger, watch this movie."
"The bottom line of this underrated masterpiece (well received upon its initial release in the 50s to be later dismissed as ""Soviet propaganda"" by a western public who often confounded cynism with truth) is that sometimes you've just to do your duty whatever the circumstances, but this doesn't means you'll lose your soul. It's the difference between blind obedience and conscious duty - something that today is often difficult to tell apart. The story is simple. Aliosha, a young Red Army ""frontnik"" almost by chance saves the life of many of his comrades. As award, he's granted a 4 day leave so he can get to see his mother back home - incidentally, this was the only way a Red Army's soldier could hope to get ANY kind of leave! During the trip he meet a young girl, and the two fall in love. But time is running out, and the war is never too far away. Aliosha will finally get to see his mother, but with little time left to stay with her. The final scene is heartbreaking (and I'm not someone who get really emotional when seeing a movie), even if you aren't aware that, with a mean frontline life expectancy of little more than two weeks, chances that Aliosha will see his mother again are pretty slim. This is a simple, effective demonstration of the cinematic power of a linear and powerful story. Very good cinematography, great perfomances and a solid editing make this a winner even for today's audiences. If you want to know what's like to be in a war where (at least!) twenty millions of your compatriots have been killed, your country ravaged and the very existence of your culture put in danger, watch this movie."