The Cranes Are Flying

The Cranes Are Flying. A Russian film from 1957. It starts with Boris and Veronica, or, as she's referred to by Boris, "Squirrel," running down what appears to be a wharf. Veronica looks up and and sees in the sky that cranes are flying.

Hence: The Cranes Are Flying. 

After Veronica recites a small bit of a poem about cranes, we are treated to opening credits overlayed atop a montage of our two star-crossed lovers frolicking through a city in Russia. Of course, it all goes to heck within the first ten minutes.

Boris goes off to fight in World War II, which has just broken out. Veronica is left to be sad at home in Mother Russia. Boris never writes to her, she gets worried, and then Boris is, surprise, surprise, the shock, the horror . . .  

. . . killed.

I tried to be dramatic there but I couldn't. It's really not at all surprising. Not in the slightest. Veronica is devastated, is forced to marry Boris' draft-dodging (not to mention cheating and possible rapist) cousin, whom, might I add, told her he loved her during an air raid as buildings blew up around them. As you can see, at this point, the crap has hit the fan in a big way. When the film ends, we are left with the impression that Veronica has left her swine of a husband and has slightly healed from the loss of Boris as she gives flowers to people and actually smiles for the first time in an hour of film time, which translates to roughly six years.

The film is very well done, the cinematography is excellent, and showcases the general day to day suckage of lives during World War II. The studio behind it definitely deserved what rewards they received for it, and the lead actress (Tatiana Samoilova) also very much deserved her rewards.

While on the subject of lead characters . . . for a moment there I did have to wonder, myself, who it actually was. It had seemed like it was Boris for a bit, but then it became clear it was Veronica. But then I asked myself, "who does it begin and end with?"

Answer:

Cranes.