Ballad of a Soldier (1959)

When I saw Ballade of a Soldier for the first time I was fifteen, and I felt in love for the girl. A love as innocent and as total as in the movie. I was tending to identify myself with the soldier, and I was seeing myself in the freight car, finding the girl there, behaving kindly, as he was doing, and finding in her eyes the same response.

Many years passed and I had the chance to see the movie again. I was now in my early sixties: no more identifying with the young heroes, still loving their love, following their innocence with a joy balanced by sadness. My empathy was naturally going now to the old mother, as I knew this time so well that there are losses that time never heals.

At an age when one falls in love, he went to die in war. He wasn't a larger than life hero, he was just an adolescent, and that's why it was so easy for me to enter his skin in my imagination; I was also an adolescent, I also was not larger than life, and I was also supposed to fall in love, as he did.

Grigori Chukhrai made this movie in 1959, three years after Сорок первый (another gem), and two years before Чистое Небо (a movie trying maybe to say too much, this time, but definitely with some unforgettable moments).

And let's mention here the names of the actors who played the two young innocent lovers: Vladimir Ivashov and Zhanna Prokhorenko.

Fmovies: "A single death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic" is the famous quote by Stalin. In this movie we see a marvellous illustration of the sentiment.

Don't worry; I didn't spoil anything. We learn from the opening narration that this is the story of a fallen hero. With that in mind, the atmosphere of impending tragedy colours the entire film despite the film's rather charming presentation. It's a wonderful irony, because the director opens with such a powerful & nihilistic statement, but then he follows with a sweet and inspiring presentation which you might even call "innocent".

I'm not exactly a fan of war movies, but I don't consider this to be one at all. There are very few details about the war, no politics, no propaganda. Essentially you can replace the Russian uniforms with British, German or Japanese, and the story would remain the same--"The Ballad of a Soldier". Oddly enough, it's the compelling portrayal of rustic life (which he encounters along his journey) that provides the backbone and theme of this film, a very human story.

It reminds me of the Italian classic "Bicycle Thieves" as well as the Japanese masterpiece "Ikuru" by Kurosawa. Each scene packs a lot of heart, and the grand finale brings it all together poetically and artistically. I won't mention any names, but I sure wish certain other artsy Russian directors could be as lucid and authentic in their presentations.

One more thing... I can't end this review without mentioning the SUPERB MUSIC. The composer is listed as Mihkail Ziv, but IMDb offers no biographical info on him. The melody is powerful and epic while being traditional and intimate at the same time. It really mirrors the theme of the film perfectly: things of great importance come in simple packages.

This movie gets 9 stars from me, which is about the highest rating I ever give. See it if you ever get the chance.

This is one of the greatest anti-war movies ever made and a touching little human drama that has not lost any of its power after half a century. After fifteen years since I first saw it, it remains among my ten favourite movies of all time from any country. It is full of poetry and visual beauty; a humble masterpiece from a young director at that time, who encountered all sorts of problems and restrictions during the shooting. Nevertheless, his perseverance to bring this work to life and the touchingly realistic performances of the cast make of this movie not only one of the best films that ever came out of the Soviet Union but also a classic gem of world cinema.

Ballad of a Soldier fmovies. "Ballad of a Soldier" along with "Andrei Rublev" is one of my favorite Russian films ever and one of the great movies made in USSR during Khruschev´s so-called "thaw" period in the late 1950s and early 1960s when soviet filmmakers got a certain amount of an artistic freedom and were less controlled by the Soviet state.

Directed and co-written by master Russian filmmaker of a soviet era, and also a WW-2 veteran, Grigory Chukhrai, who was even nominated for this picture for Academy Award for Best Screenplay, the film is set during WW-2. It´s a story of 19 year old Russian soldier who as a reward for a heroic act in fighting with Germans given a 3 day leave home by his commanding officer. We follow the soldier´s journey home through ravished by war land where he meets different people and witnesses how they lives are affected by war and falls in love with a girl whom he occasionally meets on a train. The atmosphere created by this movie is quite unique, rarely before or after achieved on the film. A genuine masterpiece of a world cinema. A must see. 10/10

"Ballada o soldate" has one of the most poignant sequences of all war movies:when the mother holds only for a few minutes, her dear boy in her arms,it's impossible to hold back your tears .I saw the movie for the first time thirty years ago and I have never forgotten it.Far from politics ,"ballada o soldate" is an universal poem,enhanced by a magnificent grandiose score,which enhances the simple beauty of the pictures,climaxing on a symphony for the finale.

Aliocha's furlough is so short (48 hours) and it's such a long way to his dear home.His journey becomes an odyssey ,but ,unlike Ulysses,his happiness will be short-lived.He and the girl form one of the most touching,lovable and innocent couple you will see on a screen.Their simple joys ,particularly when they share the soldier's food,or when they meet again in the desert station,are the ones which make a life worthwhile,even in the hell which surrounds them.

Sometimes recalling Sirk's " a time to love and a time to die"(1958)from Erich Maria Remarque ,the great German pacifist writer,with which it shares the same disgust of war ("I wanted to film a subject which could condemn war",the director said),"ballada o soldato" is one of these rare movies that will reward you each time you watch it.

In the 1950s, 2 very critically acclaimed Russian films were made. The first film was "The cranes are flying" by Mikhail Kolotozov. It is true that it was a good film but it was more of a love story. If there is a film which all human beings must watch, it is "Ballad of a soldier" made by the great Russian cinéaste Grigori Chukrai. I still have vivid memories of this film, although I saw it in 1986 on India's only public television network called "Doordarshan". What I like the most about this film is that it has tremendous emotional power to move anyone regardless of that person's ideologies or beliefs. It talks of war without begging for kindness, mercy or pity. Such is the greatness of this masterpiece. In my opinion," Ballad of a soldier" is not only the greatest Russian film ever made, it is one of the greatest world cinema gems too. For those who have not yet seen it, one word of advice. Throw away all your Hollywood flicks and watch this humanist masterpiece. PS :10 out of 10 is a understatement. "Ballad of a soldier" would easily fetch 100 out of 10.