The First Echelon (1955)
In one of the steppe regions of Kazakhstan arrives on Komsomol youth squad. Severe frosts, spring mud flows, exhausting work than their specialty - the development of virgin land does not come easy. But the young are young - they work, enjoy life, fall in love. In the center of the story - the touching romance secretary of the Komsomol organization and tractor driver Anne.
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Well Deserved Praise
Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.
This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.
After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.
This is a film that features the music of Dmitri Shoshtakovich http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKlS2Ez2UqY for example is his famous Waltz number two. This film is a masterpiece for this fact alone. It may be a cloudy reflection of post war Soviet, with trimmings of ideology but who better than the Nationalist Dmitri Shoshtakovich to set the music. For those who do not know, Dmitri Shoshtakovich is amongst the greatest composers to have lived. The movie is particularly sweet at times with trimmings of innocence, there is a vitality and energy that is timeless. The cinematography is always beautiful with wonderful vistas and excellent colour. So, this is truly a period piece, this in fact is indeed a work of art.