Film Retrospective on Post-WWII Russia

By Ines Min

Staff Reporter

A film festival in Seoul will commemorate the 65th anniversary of the end of World War II, beginning April 27, with works from the Khrushchev Thaw and more contemporary films reflecting the war.

The 13-day retrospective is organized by the Korean Association of Cinematheques and Mosfilm, Europe's largest and oldest film studio. It is the joint venture's second annual production.

Ten selected works, predominantly from the period following Josef Stalin's death in 1953, focus on the war's irrevocable effects on Russia and its people. Many of the pieces were controversial at the time, as the Thaw saw an insurgence of cultural liberation, and previously censored themes were approached with new clarity, free of propaganda.

The Mosfilm Retrospective serves to remember the turmoil seen during the war, as well as the growth of a creative revival felt after the fall of Stalin's dictatorship.

Mikhail Kalatozov's ``Cranes Are Flying'' (1957) will represent the earliest period of the Thaw and centers on a young couple whose relationship is torn apart by the war, mirrored by the horrors faced by the nation.

Nikolai Lebedev's ``Zvezda'' (2002) is the most modern piece to be screened, and follows the story of the Russian army's offensive to send a group of snipers into Nazi territory, in an understood near-suicide mission.

Special screenings will focus on the works of directors Larisa Shepitko and Elem Klimov, a married couple. Shepitko was called ``the female Tarkovsky,'' in reference to the acclaimed Soviet-era director, and three of her films ― ``The Ascent,'' ``Wings'' and ``You and Me'' ― will be shown. Works by Klimov, known for his ability to connect audiences with the realism of the gruesome subject matter, that will be screened include ``Come and See'' and ``Agony.''

Yuri Ozerov's ``Liberation'' and Grigori Chukhrai's ``Ballad of a Soldier'' will also be shown at the festival.

The event will be held at Seoul Art Cinema, Jongno, downtown Seoul, through May 9. General admission to all shows is 6,000 won. English subtitles are available for several of the films. For more information, visit www.cinematheque.seoul.kr.