This is in fact two movies shown alternately and loosely connected (one character figures in both). The first is based in a story by Ivan Bunin. The scenario is a paddlewheel steamer plying the Volga in 1907 and the characters the Lieutenant and the Strange Woman. The Lieutenant parades around in his stain proof white uniform and seduces (or is seduced by) the Strange Woman into a one-night stand which is overly romanticized. There are stops in river villages where the locals live in dignity and bearded Jews, dressed ilike Tevye stroll around without attracting undue attention.
The time frame of the second story is 1920, just as the defeated White Army commanded by General Wrangel has evacuated the Crimea and the south of Russia. Several hundred White officers are left in a prison camp in he peninsula and two evil Bolshevik commissars (one the Hungarian Béla Kun, the other the Russian Rosalia Zalkind, both real characters) are carrying out a devilish, complicated and time consuming plot to dispose of the officers. We are duly informed that both Zalkind and Kun are Jews. This story is also based on material by Bunin and consists mostly of endless, repetitive discussions among the captive officers. Subject: how the idyllic Russian Empire fell apart, Bolshevik atrocities. And the senselessness of violence. No reference to White atrocities or to the massive material support given by the Allied Powers to the Whites, plus direct invasion of Russian territory by British, Canadian, Italian, Japanese, French and American forces and proxy armies like the Czechoslovak Legion. Without this imperialist outrage, the Russian Civil War could have been shortened by years and millions of deaths (lamented at the end of the movie) could have been avoided. Also, the subsequent Bolshevik government might have been less paranoid toward the West, which opens fascinating historic possibilities.
As to the movie: gorgeous cinematography, excellent acting, but Bunin's material is not compelling and some scenes are slow and extended beyond reason. Boredom rears its ugly head, and the final feeling is one of emptiness.
The time frame of the second story is 1920, just as the defeated White Army commanded by General Wrangel has evacuated the Crimea and the south of Russia. Several hundred White officers are left in a prison camp in he peninsula and two evil Bolshevik commissars (one the Hungarian Béla Kun, the other the Russian Rosalia Zalkind, both real characters) are carrying out a devilish, complicated and time consuming plot to dispose of the officers. We are duly informed that both Zalkind and Kun are Jews. This story is also based on material by Bunin and consists mostly of endless, repetitive discussions among the captive officers. Subject: how the idyllic Russian Empire fell apart, Bolshevik atrocities. And the senselessness of violence. No reference to White atrocities or to the massive material support given by the Allied Powers to the Whites, plus direct invasion of Russian territory by British, Canadian, Italian, Japanese, French and American forces and proxy armies like the Czechoslovak Legion. Without this imperialist outrage, the Russian Civil War could have been shortened by years and millions of deaths (lamented at the end of the movie) could have been avoided. Also, the subsequent Bolshevik government might have been less paranoid toward the West, which opens fascinating historic possibilities.
As to the movie: gorgeous cinematography, excellent acting, but Bunin's material is not compelling and some scenes are slow and extended beyond reason. Boredom rears its ugly head, and the final feeling is one of emptiness.