''Two Comrades Were Serving'' (, translit. ''Sluzhili dva tovarishcha'') is a 1968 Soviet

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...

directed by

Yevgeny Karelov Yevgeny Yefimovich Karelov (; 12 October 1931 — 11 July 1977) was a Soviet film director and screenwriter known for comedy movies, war dramas, and children's films. He was named Merited Artist of the Russian Federation, Meritorious Artist of RSFS ...

with a script by

Yuli Dunsky Yuli Teodorovich Dunsky (, 22 July 1922 in Moscow, Russia – 23 March 1982 in Moscow, Soviet Union) was a Soviet screenwriter. Most works made together with Valeri Frid. Both of them were imprisoned in Gulag labor camps. Filmography Wri ...

and Valeri Frid. The film is about the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

, in particular, the battle for the

Crimean peninsula Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrai ...

Plot

In 1920, two soldiers of the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

, Andrei Nekrasov and Ivan Karyakin are sent by their regimental commander on a reconnaissance mission in an aircraft to film the

White Army The White Army, also known as the White Guard, the White Guardsmen, or simply the Whites, was a common collective name for the armed formations of the White movement and Anti-Sovietism, anti-Bolshevik governments during the Russian Civil War. T ...

fortifications on the way into

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

(

Perekop Perekop ( Ukrainian & Russian: Перекоп; ; ) is a village located on the Perekop Isthmus connecting the Crimean peninsula to the Ukrainian mainland. It is known for the Or Qapi fortress, which served as the gateway to Crimea. The villa ...

). The film's focus is the friendship between these two decidedly different characters. Nekrasov is intelligent and war-weary, while Karyakin is simple-minded, yet idealistic and energetic. After filming, the engine on their airplane stalls and they are forced to land in unfriendly territory. They are taken prisoner by Makhnovists but manage to escape and reach a different Red Army unit. They are misidentified as White Army spies and are about to be executed when their colonel appears in time to stop the firing squad. The soldiers play the reel for their commander, but very little had been captured. Karyakin begins to condemn his comrade for supposed crimes, but Nekrasov is able to draw a very accurate map of the fortifications from memory and impresses his commander. Karyakin attempts to reconcile with Nekrasov afterwards but is rebuffed. The two soldiers encounter each other again during the assault on Perekop. Karyakin has become a commander in the meantime. They forget their earlier quarrel and reconcile. In a parallel plotline, Brusentsov, a cynical and disillusioned White Army officer, accidentally kills a comrade and romances a young lady, Alexandra. He suggests an action that would have prevented a Red Army landing in Crimea but is ignored by his superiors. While fleeing after the defeat of the White Army, he shoots Nekrasov from afar; earlier, Nekrasov had stopped Karyakin from shooting Brusentsov. Karyakin tries in vain to save his friend. He brings Nekrasov's camera and film back to headquarters. He hums Karyakin's favorite song: "The bullet whizzed and aha! My comrade fell," regretting that it was Nekrasov and not himself that was killed. During the evacuation of the White Army from Crimea, Brusentsov has a priest hastily marry him and Sasha. He unsuccessfully attempts to bring his beloved horse with him on the ship. As the ship departs, the horse swims after it, and Brusentsov shoots himself. The film ends with the shots of the Red Army filmed by Nekrasov.

Cast

Oleg Yankovsky Oleg Ivanovich Yankovsky (; 23 February 1944 – 20 May 2009) was a Soviet Union, Soviet and Russian actor who excelled in psychologically sophisticated roles of modern intellectuals. In 1991, he became, together with , the last person to be nam ...

as Andrei Nekrasov *

Rolan Bykov Rolan Antonovich Bykov (October 12, 1929October 6, 1998) was a Soviet and Russian stage and film actor, director, screenwriter and pedagogue. People's Artist of the USSR (1990). Early life Rolan Bykov was born to Anton Mikhailovich Bykov and Ol ...

as Ivan Karyakin *

Anatoli Papanov Anatoli Dmitriyevich Papanov (; 31 October 1922 – 5 August 1987) was a Soviet and Russian actor, drama teacher, and theatre director at the Moscow Satire Theatre where he served for almost 40 years. A prominent character actor, Papanov is mos ...

as regiment commander * Nikolai Kryuchkov as platoon commander * Alla Demidova as Commissar *

Vladimir Vysotsky Vladimir Semyonovich Vysotsky (25 January 193825 July 1980) was a Soviet singer-songwriter, poet, and actor who had an immense and enduring effect on Soviet culture. He became widely known for his unique singing style and for his lyrics, which ...

as Alexander Brusentsov *

Iya Savvina Iya Sergeyevna Savvina (; 2 March 1936 – 27 August 2011) was a Soviet film actress who was named a People's Artist of the USSR in 1990.

as Alexandra * Nikolai Burlyayev as Sergey Lukashevich * Pyotr Krylov as chief of staff * Rostislav Yankovsky as Colonel Vasilchikov * Roman Tkachuk as White Guard officer * Nikolai Parfyonov as White Guard officer * Juozas Budraitis as member of Red Staff * Veniamin Smekhov as Baron Krause

Production

The theme song was included on Lyube's 1995 album, ''Kombat''.

References

External links

* 1968 films 1960s war comedy-drama films Russian Civil War films Films set in 1920 Films set in Crimea Soviet black-and-white films Soviet war comedy-drama films Mosfilm films 1960s Russian-language films Vladimir Vysotsky 1960s Soviet films Russian-language war comedy films Russian-language war drama films {{1960s-USSR-film-stub