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The First Circle

  • TV Movie
  • 19911991
  • 3h
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
93
YOUR RATING
F. Murray Abraham, Victor Garber, Christopher Plummer, and Robert Powell in The First Circle (1991)
Thriller
In the USSR, political prisoners who were scientists were not always sent to GULAG, but also to The First Circle (named after Dante's Inferno), a special incarceration unit near Moscow where... Read allIn the USSR, political prisoners who were scientists were not always sent to GULAG, but also to The First Circle (named after Dante's Inferno), a special incarceration unit near Moscow where they could work for the government.In the USSR, political prisoners who were scientists were not always sent to GULAG, but also to The First Circle (named after Dante's Inferno), a special incarceration unit near Moscow where they could work for the government.
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
93
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Sheldon Larry
  • Writer
    • Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn(novel)
  • Stars
    • Robert Powell
    • Victor Garber
    • Dominic Raacke
  • Director
    • Sheldon Larry
  • Writer
    • Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn(novel)
  • Stars
    • Robert Powell
    • Victor Garber
    • Dominic Raacke
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 2User reviews
    • 2Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 4 nominations

    Photos

    The First Circle (1991)
    Laurent Malet in The First Circle (1991)
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    Top cast

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    Robert Powell
    Robert Powell
    • Gleb Nershin
    Victor Garber
    Victor Garber
    • Lew Rubin
    Dominic Raacke
    Dominic Raacke
    • Nikolaj Schtschagow
    Günther Maria Halmer
    Günther Maria Halmer
    • Wladimir Tschelnow
    F. Murray Abraham
    F. Murray Abraham
    • Staline
    David Hemblen
    David Hemblen
    David Hewlett
    David Hewlett
    • 'Ruska' Rostislav
    Heath Lamberts
    Heath Lamberts
    Laurent Malet
    Laurent Malet
    • Valadine Innokenti
    Alexandra Stewart
    Alexandra Stewart
    • Aletvina Makaraguine
    Raf Vallone
    Raf Vallone
    • Pyotr Makaraguine
    Coraly Zahonero
    • Clara Makaraguine
    Vernon Dobtcheff
    Vernon Dobtcheff
    • Riyumin
    Daniel Emilfork
    Daniel Emilfork
    • Nikol
    Corinne Touzet
    • Nadia Nerzhin
    Robert Joy
    Robert Joy
    Valeria Cavalli
    Valeria Cavalli
    • Dottnara Volodine
    • (as Valéria Cavalli)
    Raymond Cloutier
    Raymond Cloutier
    • Grigory Adamson
    • Director
      • Sheldon Larry
    • Writer
      • Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn(novel)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      This was first announced in 1970 by producer Robert Solo, with Oscar winning director Fred Zinneman slated to direct but the project never materialised.
    • Goofs
      Throughout the film the wire recording is always called a tape recording even when the wire, wire recording spool and wire recorder are plainly shown. The wire recorder is actually shown in close-up while operating and still called a tape recorder.
    • Connections
      Version of V kruge pervom (2006)

    User reviews2

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    Do see it...
    In Dante's Hell, the first circle was where the enlightened pagans were located; it may have been hell--but the least painful, high class section of hell. So also is the name of the Soviet prison where the scientists work in this grim drama, and, as it unfolds, one can interpret that the first circle includes not just the prison, but the whole uppercrust society of the Soviet Union, with Stalin as Satan overlooking his domain.

    An international production made shortly after the demise of the Soviet government, this sombre drama was produced on location. Like the novel it's based on, it has too many characters and it's probably too expansive a story even for a mini-series; although it takes place in just three days, it contains about two dozen characters that one must keep track of. Nonetheless, a patient viewer will be rewarded for it portrays the fear, oppression, and sometimes outright stupidity of the postwar U.S.S.R. Although F. Murray Abraham gets top billing, he's in it for only about six minutes, yet he's unforgettable as Stalin, playing the dictator not as the virile power that Robert Duvall suggested, but more as a wizened and petty thug, a paranoid tyrant in winter. Some might think Christopher Plummer overacts his role, but the real Abakunov was one who discovered that passion helped win promotions more than intellect did, and, as a result, he over-emphasized his zeal and deemphasized his thought (The mini-series doesn't portray this, but the real Abakunov would be executed one year after Stalin's death). The rest of the cast is wonderful, even if some are obviously foreign-language actors who are dubbed.

    See it and rejoice in your freedom.
    helpful•18
    1
    • patrick.hunter
    • Jan 12, 2004

    Details

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    • Release date
      • February 25, 1992 (France)
    • Countries of origin
      • France
      • Canada
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Den första kretsen
    • Filming locations
      • Montréal, Québec, Canada
    • Production company
      • Technisonor
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      3 hours
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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    F. Murray Abraham, Victor Garber, Christopher Plummer, and Robert Powell in The First Circle (1991)
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