The Cranes are Flying (1957)

 Mikhail Kalatozov's "The Cranes are Flying"

After the death of Joseph Stalin, the Soviet Union entered a new age. The same could be said for Soviet cinema, as a fresh new wave of Soviet cinema took off, which would retrospectively become known as the "Soviet thaw." One of the central figures that reinvigorated filmmaking during this period was Georgian filmmaker Mikhail Kalatozov. Kalatozov's inventive film techniques not only revolutionized Soviet cinema, but global cinema as a whole. The film that sparked this excitement was a film that ended up being the only Soviet film that won the Palme d'or at the Cannes Film Festival. This film was 1957's "The Cranes are Flying." 

"The Cranes are Flying" centers on a relationship between a young woman named Veronika and a young man named Boris during World War II. Right before the war begins, they are in the throws of young love. However, Boris decides to enlist in order to serve and protect his country from the fascist regime of the Nazis. Veronika stays behind waiting his return but does not receive any correspondence. One day, Boris' cousin, Mark, rapes Veronika and forces her to be his wife. Boris and Mark's family feel betrayed by Veronika for abandoning Boris while he is defending Mother Russia. After learning that Mark bribed his way out of being drafted, the family disavows Mark and forgives Veronika. However, word gets back that Boris was killed in action, but Veronika remains hopeful nonetheless. When Boris' unit returns, they inform Veronika that he did, in fact, get killed. Veronika passes out flowers to everyone.

What struck me most about the film was the utterly imaginative use of composition and camera. The shots are composed like well-thought-out photographs, while Kalatozov's camera is utterly free to explore the physical space. You would think those two would be mutually exclusive, as one must require a rigid camera to capture compositionally beautiful images. Rather, Kalatozov does not restrict himself. I was utterly awestruck by how Kalatozov was able to move his camera so freely through environments, especially in the scenes involving large groups of people. The effect is dramatic, as I felt as overwhelmed by the commotion as the characters did in those scenes. 

I will take this film with me in my mind, as many of the images and sequences are so incredibly memorable. There is a scene of Boris running up the stairs towards Veronika, and the camera follows him parallel up the spiral staircase in a dizzying fashion. How this shot was even achieved, I have no idea. There is the scene where Veronika runs through the crowd to see Boris one last time before he departs. The amount of extras required for this scene was ridiculous, as Kalatozov was more than happy to completely engulf himself and the camera within the crowd. What's even crazier is that it almost seemed seamless how the camera went from handheld within the crowd to on a crane hovering over. The title of the film is utterly appropriate when you see how many ridiculously impressive overhead crane shots are captured. The cinematography of the film is something I will never ever forget.

Not only was the visual imagery of the film so impressive, freeform, and inspiringly creative, the film itself represented a new vision of the Soviet Union and Mother Russia. Although the film continues the Soviet orthodox of nationalist propaganda, in that the ending of the film makes you swell with pride for the country and those who've sacrificed their lives in World War II, it still is vehemently anti-war, feminist, and represents a new individual perspective that is more commonly held for Western cinema. 

"The Cranes are Flying" introduced the world to a new standard for Soviet cinema, embarking on new and ingenious territories for fellow national and global filmmakers to follow.