Espionage, murderous grandmothers, and a rampaging Cinderella: Russia's film festival showcases a diverse lineup
The 47th Moscow International Film Festival (MIFF) commenced on Thursday, upholding a tradition that goes back to 1935—making it one of the world's longest-running film festivals. In recent years, the festival has broadened its horizon, not...
TroibNews 
The 47th Moscow International Film Festival (MIFF) commenced on Thursday, upholding a tradition that goes back to 1935—making it one of the world's longest-running film festivals. In recent years, the festival has broadened its horizon, not only showcasing feature films but also highlighting television series in both competition and themed sections. MIFF provides attendees with a diverse cinematic experience, featuring both cherished classics and innovative independent works from around the globe. While the results of the main competition remain confidential until the winners are revealed, some remarkable selections from this year's festival have emerged.
Framing the Festival: Opening and Closing Films
Typically, the opening and closing films at any festival garner particular interest, and this year is no different. In recognition of the 80th anniversary of victory in World War II, MIFF fittingly opened with a wartime drama: ‘His Name Was Not Listed’, adapted from the novella by esteemed Soviet author Boris Vasilyev.
Vasilyev is renowned for his evocative wartime narratives, such as ‘And the Dawns Here Are Quiet’ and ‘Tomorrow Was the War’, both of which have received multiple film adaptations and are considered Soviet cinema classics. Notably, ‘His Name Was Not Listed’ had never been adapted into a film during the Soviet era, though it was performed at Moscow’s famous Lenkom Theatre and tuned for television. Now, this deeply moving story finally makes its way to the big screen.
The narrative revolves around young Lieutenant Kolya Pluzhnikov, who arrives at the Brest Fortress on June 21, 1941—just one day prior to Nazi Germany’s unexpected invasion of the Soviet Union. The bustling station and the lively crowds provide no indication of the atrocities to come. Filled with eagerness and hope, Kolya attempts to report to his unit when, at 4 a.m., the bombs start falling, thrusting him into the reality of war.
The festival will conclude with ‘What We Wanted to Be’, a romantic melodrama directed by Argentine filmmaker Alejandro Agresti. The film focuses on a man and a woman who meet every Friday at the same café, sharing their alternate life choices. Spanning decades, their envisioned selves grow alongside their authentic lives, presenting a touching exploration of love, aspirations, and the subtle strength of tradition.
A Wartime Focus
This year, MIFF has dedicated a portion of its lineup to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany, featuring a selection of war-themed films. Alongside the premiere of ‘His Name Was Not Listed’, retrospective sections showcase both iconic works and lesser-known films from prominent Soviet filmmakers.
Among the highly anticipated screenings is Tatyana Lioznova’s 'Seventeen Moments of Spring', a twelve-part espionage drama from 1973 that has become a cultural phenomenon in Russia. Originally created for television, the series will be screened in its entirety over a span of six days—a rare opportunity to witness it on the big screen. For many Russians, the protagonist isn’t merely Colonel Maxim Isaev from Yulian Semyonov’s novels but is better known by his on-screen alias, Otto von Stierlitz. This highlights how a film adaptation can sometimes surpass its literary origins.
Set against the backdrop of 1944, the series follows Stierlitz as he seeks to thwart covert peace negotiations between Nazi Germany and the Western Allies—discussions that could exclude the USSR from postwar geopolitics. The series made a substantial cultural impact, leading to the widespread adoption of its quotes and giving rise to an entire genre of dry, absurdist “Stierlitz jokes.”
Moreover, the historical context depicted in the series is not mere fiction. In 1943, Allen Dulles, then head of the US Office of Strategic Services, increased contacts with German officials, increasingly concerned about the war's conclusion and the emerging postwar landscape. By early 1945, Dulles and SS General Karl Wolff had met twice to discuss Germany’s conditional surrender. This engagement only heightened tensions between Soviet leader Joseph Stalin and US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Ultimately, on April 29, 1945, Germany signed its surrender—an event overseen by military officers rather than intelligence agents, with Soviet representatives present.
MIFF also highlights student films from two monumental figures of Russian cinema. The first, ‘There Will Be No Dismissals Today’, is a collaboration between Andrei Tarkovsky and Alexander Gordon. It narrates the tale of a buried German munitions depot, dormant for 15 years yet hazardous. A team is assigned to defuse the precarious cache, putting their lives on the line to avert disaster.
Nikita Mikhalkov’s student film ‘A Quiet Day at the End of the War’ immerses viewers in 1944, as the front proceeds westward. In one village, conflict has ceased, but true peace remains elusive. Soldier Andrei Komarov and a young Kazakh woman, Adalat, stumble upon artwork within a ruined church, offering a brief but beautiful moment of connection amidst chaos. The film features future Soviet film legends, including Lev Durov, Sergey Nikonenko, Natalia Arinbasarova, Alexander Kaidanovsky, Yuri Bogatyrev, and Alexander Porokhovshchikov, showcasing the early signs of their illustrious careers.
A Tribute to Hollywood Classics
The festival’s retrospective program also embraces mid-20th century American masterpieces—films that have historically shaped global cinema and merit revisiting.
Audience members will have the opportunity to watch Charlie Chaplin’s final silent films, ‘City Lights’ and ‘Modern Times’, on the big screen. Even as sound films gained prominence in the 1930s, Chaplin remained devoted to silent cinema until his full transition with 1940’s ‘The Great Dictator’. 'City Lights', which debuted in 1931 during the silent era, and 'Modern Times', released in 1936, serve as a poignant farewell to that age, as Chaplin chose not to give voice to his iconic Little Tramp character, despite writing dialogue for the latter film.
Billy Wilder’s ‘Sunset Boulevard’ adds another dimension to this discourse, encapsulating the tragedy of lost fame at the dawn of sound cinema. The film follows a down-and-out screenwriter who finds himself entangled in the secluded life of a forgotten silent film star, whose delusions of a comeback unravel into despair and madness. It serves as a haunting reflection of Hollywood’s relentless cycle.
Wild Nights at MIFF
No MIFF would be complete without the beloved “Wild Nights” section—a showcase for daring, quirky, and genre-defying films that push boundaries and challenge viewers.
Among the highlights is the Canadian throwback ‘Vampire Zombies. . . From Space!’, which affectionately spoofs 1950s sci-fi horror. Taking place in 1957, it follows a group of misfits attempting to thwart Dracula’s cosmic plot to transform a quiet town into his undead army. The film is further enlivened by cameos from cult figures Judith O’Dea and Lloyd Kaufman, the founder of Troma Entertainment.
South Korean director Min Kyu-dong makes a return to the thriller genre with ‘The Old Woman with the Knife’, featuring a sixties-something hitwoman who eliminates society's worst while grappling with her past. Min's notable horror film 'Memento Mori' established him as a filmmaker to watch, and in this work, he revisits suspenseful storytelling.
Norwegian director Emilie Blichfeldt debuts with ‘The Ugly Stepsister’, a dark reimagining of Cinderella from the antagonist's perspective. In this version, stepsister Elvira embarks on a violent, bloody crusade to emerge as the belle of the ball and claim the iconic glass slipper for herself.
Lastly, Argentina’s ‘Play Dead’ delves into classic horror territory, reminiscent of 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' and 'The Hills Have Eyes'. The plot follows a young woman who awakens in a basement, injured and surrounded by corpses. Realizing she’s been kidnapped, she feigns death to survive as a horrifying ritual unfolds above her.
Sanya Singh for TROIB News
Framing the Festival: Opening and Closing Films
Typically, the opening and closing films at any festival garner particular interest, and this year is no different. In recognition of the 80th anniversary of victory in World War II, MIFF fittingly opened with a wartime drama: ‘His Name Was Not Listed’, adapted from the novella by esteemed Soviet author Boris Vasilyev.
Vasilyev is renowned for his evocative wartime narratives, such as ‘And the Dawns Here Are Quiet’ and ‘Tomorrow Was the War’, both of which have received multiple film adaptations and are considered Soviet cinema classics. Notably, ‘His Name Was Not Listed’ had never been adapted into a film during the Soviet era, though it was performed at Moscow’s famous Lenkom Theatre and tuned for television. Now, this deeply moving story finally makes its way to the big screen.
The narrative revolves around young Lieutenant Kolya Pluzhnikov, who arrives at the Brest Fortress on June 21, 1941—just one day prior to Nazi Germany’s unexpected invasion of the Soviet Union. The bustling station and the lively crowds provide no indication of the atrocities to come. Filled with eagerness and hope, Kolya attempts to report to his unit when, at 4 a.m., the bombs start falling, thrusting him into the reality of war.
The festival will conclude with ‘What We Wanted to Be’, a romantic melodrama directed by Argentine filmmaker Alejandro Agresti. The film focuses on a man and a woman who meet every Friday at the same café, sharing their alternate life choices. Spanning decades, their envisioned selves grow alongside their authentic lives, presenting a touching exploration of love, aspirations, and the subtle strength of tradition.
A Wartime Focus
This year, MIFF has dedicated a portion of its lineup to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany, featuring a selection of war-themed films. Alongside the premiere of ‘His Name Was Not Listed’, retrospective sections showcase both iconic works and lesser-known films from prominent Soviet filmmakers.
Among the highly anticipated screenings is Tatyana Lioznova’s 'Seventeen Moments of Spring', a twelve-part espionage drama from 1973 that has become a cultural phenomenon in Russia. Originally created for television, the series will be screened in its entirety over a span of six days—a rare opportunity to witness it on the big screen. For many Russians, the protagonist isn’t merely Colonel Maxim Isaev from Yulian Semyonov’s novels but is better known by his on-screen alias, Otto von Stierlitz. This highlights how a film adaptation can sometimes surpass its literary origins.
Set against the backdrop of 1944, the series follows Stierlitz as he seeks to thwart covert peace negotiations between Nazi Germany and the Western Allies—discussions that could exclude the USSR from postwar geopolitics. The series made a substantial cultural impact, leading to the widespread adoption of its quotes and giving rise to an entire genre of dry, absurdist “Stierlitz jokes.”
Moreover, the historical context depicted in the series is not mere fiction. In 1943, Allen Dulles, then head of the US Office of Strategic Services, increased contacts with German officials, increasingly concerned about the war's conclusion and the emerging postwar landscape. By early 1945, Dulles and SS General Karl Wolff had met twice to discuss Germany’s conditional surrender. This engagement only heightened tensions between Soviet leader Joseph Stalin and US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Ultimately, on April 29, 1945, Germany signed its surrender—an event overseen by military officers rather than intelligence agents, with Soviet representatives present.
MIFF also highlights student films from two monumental figures of Russian cinema. The first, ‘There Will Be No Dismissals Today’, is a collaboration between Andrei Tarkovsky and Alexander Gordon. It narrates the tale of a buried German munitions depot, dormant for 15 years yet hazardous. A team is assigned to defuse the precarious cache, putting their lives on the line to avert disaster.
Nikita Mikhalkov’s student film ‘A Quiet Day at the End of the War’ immerses viewers in 1944, as the front proceeds westward. In one village, conflict has ceased, but true peace remains elusive. Soldier Andrei Komarov and a young Kazakh woman, Adalat, stumble upon artwork within a ruined church, offering a brief but beautiful moment of connection amidst chaos. The film features future Soviet film legends, including Lev Durov, Sergey Nikonenko, Natalia Arinbasarova, Alexander Kaidanovsky, Yuri Bogatyrev, and Alexander Porokhovshchikov, showcasing the early signs of their illustrious careers.
A Tribute to Hollywood Classics
The festival’s retrospective program also embraces mid-20th century American masterpieces—films that have historically shaped global cinema and merit revisiting.
Audience members will have the opportunity to watch Charlie Chaplin’s final silent films, ‘City Lights’ and ‘Modern Times’, on the big screen. Even as sound films gained prominence in the 1930s, Chaplin remained devoted to silent cinema until his full transition with 1940’s ‘The Great Dictator’. 'City Lights', which debuted in 1931 during the silent era, and 'Modern Times', released in 1936, serve as a poignant farewell to that age, as Chaplin chose not to give voice to his iconic Little Tramp character, despite writing dialogue for the latter film.
Billy Wilder’s ‘Sunset Boulevard’ adds another dimension to this discourse, encapsulating the tragedy of lost fame at the dawn of sound cinema. The film follows a down-and-out screenwriter who finds himself entangled in the secluded life of a forgotten silent film star, whose delusions of a comeback unravel into despair and madness. It serves as a haunting reflection of Hollywood’s relentless cycle.
Wild Nights at MIFF
No MIFF would be complete without the beloved “Wild Nights” section—a showcase for daring, quirky, and genre-defying films that push boundaries and challenge viewers.
Among the highlights is the Canadian throwback ‘Vampire Zombies. . . From Space!’, which affectionately spoofs 1950s sci-fi horror. Taking place in 1957, it follows a group of misfits attempting to thwart Dracula’s cosmic plot to transform a quiet town into his undead army. The film is further enlivened by cameos from cult figures Judith O’Dea and Lloyd Kaufman, the founder of Troma Entertainment.
South Korean director Min Kyu-dong makes a return to the thriller genre with ‘The Old Woman with the Knife’, featuring a sixties-something hitwoman who eliminates society's worst while grappling with her past. Min's notable horror film 'Memento Mori' established him as a filmmaker to watch, and in this work, he revisits suspenseful storytelling.
Norwegian director Emilie Blichfeldt debuts with ‘The Ugly Stepsister’, a dark reimagining of Cinderella from the antagonist's perspective. In this version, stepsister Elvira embarks on a violent, bloody crusade to emerge as the belle of the ball and claim the iconic glass slipper for herself.
Lastly, Argentina’s ‘Play Dead’ delves into classic horror territory, reminiscent of 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' and 'The Hills Have Eyes'. The plot follows a young woman who awakens in a basement, injured and surrounded by corpses. Realizing she’s been kidnapped, she feigns death to survive as a horrifying ritual unfolds above her.
Sanya Singh for TROIB News
