The Forty-first (1956)
"Sorok pervyy" (original title)

An unexpected romance occurs for a female Red Army sniper and a White Army officer.

Director:

Grigoriy Chukhray

Writers:

Grigori Koltunov, Boris Lavrenyev (novel)

Stars:

Izolda Izvitskaya, Oleg Strizhenov, Nikolai Kryuchkov

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Izolda Izvitskaya	...	Soldier Maria Filatovna
Oleg Strizhenov	...	Lieutenant Vadim Nikolayevich Govorkha, Jr.
Nikolai Kryuchkov	...	Commander Ansenti Yevsyukov
Nikolai Dupak	...	Soldier Andrei Chupilko (as N. Dupak)
Georgi Shapovalov	...	Soldier Terentyev (as G. Shapovalov)
Pyotr Lyubeshkin	...	(as P. Lyubeshkin)
L. Kovylin	...	Soldier Kovylin
Yu. Romanov	...	Soldier Vyakhir
Daniil Netrebin	...	Soldier Semyannin (as D. Netrebin)
A. Umuraliyev	...	Soldier Umankul
Anatoli Kokorin	...	Soldier Yegorov (as A. Kokorin)
Vadim Sinitsyn	...	Wounded soldier (as V. Sinitsyn)
K. Zharkimbayev	...	Timerkul
T. Sardarbekova	...	Altynai, village girl
Vadim Zakharchenko	...	(as V. Zakharchenko)

Storyline

An unexpected romance occurs for a female Red Army sniper and a White Army officer.

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Plot Keywords:

sniper | officer | water | caspian sea | tears | 

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Genres:

War | Drama | Romance

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Details

Country:

Soviet Union

Language:

Russian

Release Date:

15 October 1956 (Soviet Union)

Also Known As:

The Forty-first

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mosfilm

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Sovcolor)

Did You Know?

Connections

Featured in Histoire(s) du cinéma: Les signes parmi nous (1998)

User Reviews

Chukhrai's visual wonder -- love and dreams doomed by war

Quite a filmmaker this Chukhrai was. Not much available from him, but I am happy to have seen two of his movies. "The Forty-first" perhaps wasn't as great as the wonderful "Ballad of a Soldier", but this is still quite an interesting film. Both of these films are war films, but contrary to what one might expect these films are told in a rather romantic, light-hearted, Hollywood style. Both films do have tragic elements which present themselves as the films progress, but they are largely rather light and enjoyable, even charming romance pictures of loved ones being torn apart and doomed by war. This story was started here with "The Forty-first" and would be perfected in "Ballad of a Soldier".

The script isn't particularly strong here, but where this film really stands out is in its visuals. An utterly stunning visual work from Chukhrai. I'm not sure I have seen a color film look like this one before! You have to see it to understand. Additionally, it's just constantly a visually dynamic film in Chukhrai's camera-movement and use of close-ups. The film is at the very least continually visually interesting and at its peak just stunning to look at. There's a really rich, dreamy atmosphere that develops by the end of the movie, and it makes for a quite unique viewing experience.

The ending is both quite outlandish but also tragic. Not too sure what to completely make of it. Then again, this was never a film which really strived for any kind of realism, so its over the top nature isn't too jarring with the rest. Actually, the more I think about it, the more I like it.