Hussein Erkenov's courageous and stinging indictment of communism. Five young Red Army recruits struggle for survival against the merciless violence that surrounds them on a daily basis. Their only means of saving their dignity is by preserving the humanity and compassion they share for each other.
Cinematography
Dreamlike monochrome that weaponizes beauty against brutality.
Direction
Erkenov's elliptical storytelling smuggles queerness past Soviet censors.
Acting
Silent glances between recruits speak volumes the dialogue cannot.
Director
Hussein Erkenov
Vladimir Zamanskiy
The Unknown Man
Armen Dzhigarkhanyan
Brigade Commander
Oleg Vasilkov
Elin
Roman Grekov
Zub
Valery Troshin
Kudrin
Aleksandr Chislov
Zyrin
Mikhail Solomatin
Belikov
Sergei Rozhentsev
Titarenko
Sergey Bystritskiy
Senior Lieutenant Umnov
Elena Kondulaynen
Death
Oleg Khusainov
Angel
Aleksei Volkov
Vladimir Puchkov
Pavel Stepanov
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Erkenov shot this in 1984 but Soviet censors banned it until 1991; it premiered as the USSR collapsed.
The 'Unknown Man' was added in post-production—his cryptic narration wasn't in Erkenov's original cut, a compromise with censors that accidentally deepened the film's existential dread.
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