Nainen rannalta

In the Nineteenth Century, at the seaside resort of Yalta, the upper class Dimitri Gurov (Aleksey Batalov) from Moscow meets Anna Sergeyovna (Iya Savvina) walking with her little dog. Both have unhappy marriages: Dimitri has a marriage of convenience arranged by the family when he was a college boy and Anna married a lackey for love that has gone, and they have a love affair.

When Anna returns to Saratov and Dimitri to Moscow, he has a boring life at home, spending his time working and going to the club after hours alone to drink and play cards with his friends. On Christmas, Dimitri misses Anna and lies to his wife, telling that he has a business trip to Saint Petersburg. However, he heads to Saratov and he meets Anna in the Opera House with her husband. Their love kindles and Anna promises to meet him in Moscow. In a period when divorce would be unthinkable, Anna and Dimitri are doomed to meet each other in hotel rooms.

"Dama s Sobachkoj" is a classy and melancholic love story by Iosif Kheifits based on a short story by Anton Chekhov. The film is developed in slow pace, with magnificent black and white cinematography and music score.

Iya Savvina has one of the prettiest faces I have ever seen and it is easy to explain the initial attraction of Dimitri for Anna. Each frame is magnificently shot in beautiful planes and details. The DVD released by the Brazilian distributor Cult Classic is totally restored with perfect image and sound. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "A Dama do Cachorrinho" ("The Lady of the Little Dog")