Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears (1980)

This is a life story of three girlfriends from youth to autumn ages. Their dreams and wishes, love, disillusions. Different careers. And big late love.

Director:

Vladimir Menshov

Writers:

Valentin Chernykh, Vladimir Menshov

Stars:

Vera Alentova, Aleksey Batalov, Irina Muravyova

Won 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Vera Alentova	...	Katerina 'Katia' Tikhomirova
Aleksey Batalov	...	Georgi 'Gosha'
Irina Muravyova	...	Lyudmila Gurina
Raisa Ryazanova	...	Antonina
Aleksandr Fatyushin	...	Sergey 'Seryozha' Gurin
Boris Smorchkov	...	Nikolay
Yuriy Vasilev	...	Rodion 'Rudolph' Rachkov
Natalya Vavilova	...	Aleksandra, doch Kateriny
Oleg Tabakov	...	Volodya
Yevgeniya Khanayeva	...	maty Rachkova
Valentina Ushakova	...	Anna Nikitichna, maty Nikolaya
Viktor Uralskiy	...	Mikhail Ivanovich, otets Nikolaya
Zoya Fyodorova	...	tetya Pasha, vakhtersha
Liya Akhedzhakova	...	Olga Pavlovna, director kluba
Tatyana Konyukhova	...	Herself

Storyline

This is a life story of three girlfriends from youth to autumn ages. Their dreams and wishes, love, disillusions. Different careers. And big late love.

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Plot Keywords:

single mother | female bonding | city name in title | vodka | working class | 

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Taglines:

The Funniest, Tenderest Love Story of the Year

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Mosfilm [rus]

Country:

Soviet Union

Language:

Russian

Release Date:

11 February 1980 (Soviet Union)

Also Known As:

Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears

Filming Locations:

Moscow, Russia

Box Office

Budget:

$900,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mosfilm, Vtoroe Tvorcheskoe Obedinenie

Technical Specs

Runtime:

150 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color Color (Sovcolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Soviet Union's second highest-grossing film of all time. It was surpassed only by Pirates of the 20th Century (1980)

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Goofs

When Lyudmila and her friend approach the office building she is wearing a pair of white shoes. Once inside the building the shoes color changes to black.

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Quotes

Lyudmila Gurina: Don't cry.
Lyudmila Gurina: You know what Moscow thinks of tears.
Lyudmila Gurina: We shouldn't be sitting around, we should do something.

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Connections

Referenced in The Americans: Dead Hand (2018)

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Soundtracks

Aleksandra, Aleksandra
Written by Sergey Nikitin and Dmitry Suharev and Yuri Vizbor
Performed by Tatyana Nikitina and Sergey Nikitin

User Reviews

Let's remember this is a Russian Comedy

Being of Russian descent and a first generation Australian, I first saw this film in the original Russian a year or two after it came out. At the time I thought it was one of the funniest things I had seen in a long long time. I saw it again when our World Movie channel broadcast it and I laughed just as hard and just as long. To understand the comedy in what appears to be a story of feminist angst you need to be Russian. There is no other way to see it. We don't see that the supposed conflict between between the heroine and her lover is that she is a manager and he is not. It's much more primal than that. It is because she EARNS more than he does. Women held managerial positions in the USSR since they first began driving tanks and tractors during the second world war. Most of us are brought up to believe that we can do just about anything, and a lot of the time we have to. So please, if you see this film, remember to laugh. Remember that Yes, Russians aren't happy unless they're miserable but the story of this film is also about the joy of rebuilding lives and relationships for both men and women and about the triumph of the human spirit over seemingly impossible odds.