''Siberiade'' (, translit. ''Sibiriada'') is a 1979

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

historical drama film A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction such as c ...

directed by

Andrei Konchalovsky Andrei Sergeyevich Konchalovsky (; né Mikhalkov; born 20 August 1937) is a Russian film and theatre director, screenwriter, and producer. His filmmaking career spans over 60 years in Cinema of the Soviet Union, Soviet, Cinema of the United St ...

and produced by

Mosfilm Mosfilm (, ''Mosfil’m'' , initialism and portmanteau of Moscow Films) is a film studio in Moscow which is among the largest and oldest in the Russian Federation and in Europe. Founded in 1924 in the USSR as a production unit of that nation's fi ...

. The four-part

epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...

spans much of the 20th century.

Themes

The film combines narrative elements from different traditions. Its first part tells of wondrous archetypical elements within the Russian culture, as connected to the pre-electrified epoch that is being narrated. Similarly, elements of the heroic epic are included within the part narrating the protagonist's involvement in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Synopsis

The story revolves around two feuding families, the Solomins and the Ustyuzhanins, who live in Yelan. The Solomins were relatively wealthy and the Ustyuzhanins poor. The film begins in 1904. Afanasy "Afonya" Ustyuzhanin is an aging man who spends all of his waking hours chopping a corduroy road "anywhere away from Yelan". His seven-year-old son Nikolai "Kolya" Ustyuzhanin must fend for himself by stealing from the Solomins. He meets Rodion Klimentov, a revolutionary fugitive who inspires him, but is soon found by the police and taken away. In 1917, Kolya continues to help his father build the road, which has become an epic project stretching many miles. He is in a romantic relationship with a hoyden, Anastasia "Nastya" Solomina, but a quarrel about the

revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...

infuriates Nastya, who immediately seeks out Philip Solomin, kisses him, and demands marriage. (It is implied that Philip had previously had a non-reciprocated interest in her, and believes at first he is being mocked.) As the wedding preparations begin, Kolya begs for forgiveness, but Nastya savors the revenge. Kolya fights with the Solomins and is beaten and cast adrift down the river. At the end of the ceremony, Nastya makes a defiant gesture to Philip, apparently making clear that she will not be his either, despite having married him. He later finds her hiding in a barn; he fights and partially strips her, and then lets her go. She leaves to join an unconscious Kolya. Meanwhile Afonya (still chopping) has a problem with his heart, lies down on an ant nest, and dies alone. In 1932, Kolya returns to Yelan as a charismatic

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will oft ...

official with his loyal, revolutionary-minded son Aleksei. He informs the Solomins that Nastya, who had left with him, died heroically. In a town hall meeting he gets the village to agree on a plan for tapping the area's natural resources. A dispute leads to Kolya arresting Spiridon Solomin, who soon escapes and kills Kolya. Aleksei flees. In June 1941, Aleksei, a teenager, returns to Yelan and meets Taya, at that point still a naïve girl; she becomes infatuated with him. A recruiting barge visits the town, announcing the beginning of the

Great Patriotic War The Eastern Front, also known as the Great Patriotic War (term), Great Patriotic War in the Soviet Union and its successor states, and the German–Soviet War in modern Germany and Ukraine, was a Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II ...

, and Aleksei enlists. The boat pulls away and Taya yells to Aleksei that she will wait for him all her life. In the war, Aleksei saves an injured officer (Philip, whom he does not know, or at least recognize) and becomes a decorated war hero. The war ends, and Taya continues to wait for Aleksei's return day after day, which never occurs. Around 1964, Aleksei returns to Yelan with an oil drilling crew. His uncle, Spiridon, has returned from prison a bitter and frail man, and Aleksei feels only pity. He meets Taya and has a casual affair, but she is also courted by Aleksei's boss Tofik, causing a rift. Meanwhile, Philip, who is in Moscow, has risen high into the ranks of Soviet leadership, but wrestles with his conscience over the plan for a massive

hydroelectric dam Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

project that would flood Yelan. Aleksei resigns from the oil drilling operation to leave town, stopping at Taya's house to take her with him to the resort city of

Sochi Sochi ( rus, Сочи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg, from – ''seaside'') is the largest Resort town, resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi (river), Sochi River, along the Black Sea in the North Caucasus of Souther ...

, but it becomes clear that they have grown apart; she refuses to say whether the child she expects is Aleksei's or Tofik's. Aleksei storms off, and the oil well blows out as he leaves town. The blowout turns into an inferno and Aleksei rushes in to save a former coworker, and dies in the process. Spiridon gloats over the demise of the last Ustyuzhanin, but Taya reveals to him that she bears Aleksei's child. At a party conference in Moscow, a telegram arrives with the news of the oil strike, which vindicates Siberia as a mining center. The officials react with pleasure but give a moment of silence for the passing of Aleksei. Philip flies to Yelan to supervise the containment operation, but it becomes clear that the graveyard must be razed to save the town. As the film closes, the ghosts of the Solomins and Ustyuzhanins seemingly appear in the graveyard expressing gratitude and unity.

Cast

* Vladimir Samoilov as Afanasy Ustyuzhanin *

Natalya Andrejchenko Natalya Eduardovna Andreychenko (; born May 3, 1956) is a Soviet and Russian actress. She has starred in '' Mary Poppins, Goodbye'' and '' Wartime Romance'' (both 1983). She has the title of Honored Artist of the RSFSR (1984).Новая Рос� ...

as Nastya Solomina *

Vitaly Solomin Vitaly Mefodievich Solomin (; 12 December 194127 May 2002) was a Soviet and Russian actor, director and screenwriter, best remembered for playing Dr. Watson in a series of Sherlock Holmes adaptations for Soviet television. He was the younger b ...

as Nikolai Ustyuzhanin *

Nikita Mikhalkov Nikita Sergeyevich Mikhalkov (; born 21 October 1945) is a Russian filmmaker and actor. He made his directorial debut with the Red Western film ''At Home Among Strangers'' (1974) after appearing in a series of films, including the romantic com ...

as Aleksei Ustyuzhanin ** Yevgeny Leonov-Gladyshev as Aleksei in 1940s * Lyudmila Gurchenko as Taya Solomina ** Yelena Koreneva as Taya in 1940s * Sergey Shakurov as Spiridon Solomin * Natalya Andreychenko as Anastasia * Igor Okhlupin as Philip Solomin * Pavel Kadochnikov as prophetic old man

Awards

The film won the Grand Prix at the

1979 Cannes Film Festival The 32nd Cannes Film Festival took place from 10 to 24 May 1979. French writer Françoise Sagan served as jury president for the main competition. The ''Palme d'Or'', the festival's top prize, was jointly awarded to ''Apocalypse Now'' by Francis ...

In popular culture

Eduard Artemyev's theme from the movie, ''Crusade'', was covered by the Russian trance act PPK and issued under the title " ResuRection" in August 2001. It reached #3 in the UK Singles Chart. Equilibrio Chimpunpan's cover, ''Eduard Artemyev: Siberiade Theme'', and Peter Theremin's cover, ''Sibiriada'', were released in 2018. In 2020, it was used again by European music producers VIZE and

Alan Walker Alan Olav Walker (born 24 August 1997) is a Norwegian DJ and record producer. His songs "Faded (Alan Walker song), Faded", "Sing Me to Sleep", "Alone (Alan Walker song), Alone", "All Falls Down (Alan Walker song), All Falls Down" (with Noah Cy ...

for their song ''Space Melody (Edward Artemyev)'', a dance record which featured German singer Leony on vocals. Two further covers were released in the same year; the single ''Sibiriada'' by CS-Jay (Christian Steen Jensen) and the album track ''Siberiade'' by Messer Chups. The movie's theme was also used during the

opening ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly constructed location or the start of an event.

of the

2014 Winter Olympics The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially called the XXII Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Sochi 2014 (), were an international winter multi-sport event that was held from 7 to 23 February 2014 in Sochi, Russia. Opening ro ...

in Sochi, when Lyubov, the little girl, climbs in the air.

References

External links

* * * * {{Authority control 1979 films 1970s war films 1979 in the Soviet Union 1970s historical romance films 1970s historical drama films 1979 romantic drama films 1970s war drama films 1970s war romance films 1970s Soviet films 1970s Russian-language films 1979 multilingual films Soviet multilingual films 1970s German-language films Soviet historical drama films Soviet romantic drama films Soviet war drama films Soviet epic films Soviet World War II films Russian World War II films 1970s war romance films Films set in 1904 Films set in 1917 Films set in 1932 Films set in 1941 Films set in 1964 Mosfilm films Films directed by Andrei Konchalovsky Films scored by Eduard Artemyev Cannes Grand Prix winners Russian-language historical romance films Russian-language historical drama films Russian-language war drama films Russian-language romantic drama films German-language war films