Ballad of a Soldier (1959)
Ballada o soldate
From the very pages of life itself!
88 min
During World War II, earnest young Russian soldier Alyosha Skvortsov is rewarded with a short leave of absence for performing a heroic deed on the battlefield. Feeling homesick, he decides to visit his mother. Due to his kindhearted nature, however, Alyosha is repeatedly sidetracked by his efforts to help those he encounters, including a lovely girl named Shura. In his tour of a country devastated by war, he struggles to keep hope alive.
- Release date
- December 1, 1959
- Country of origin
- Russia
- Music
- Mikhail Ziv
Where to watch
Subscription
Criterion Channel
Free
Darkroom
Trailer
Cast
- Vladimir Ivashov as Alyosha Skvortsov
- Zhanna Prokhorenko as Shura
- Antonina Maksimova as Katerina (Alyosha's Mother)
- Nikolay Kryuchkov as The General
- Evgeniy Urbanskiy as Vasya (The Invalid)
- Elza Lezhdey as Liza (The Invalid's Wife)
- Aleksandr Kuznetsov as Gavrilkin (The Train Sentry)
- Evgeniy Teterin as The Lieutenant ('A terrible beast')
- Valentina Markova as Zoya (Skvortsovs' neighbor)
- Vladimir Pokrovskiy as Vasiliy Egorovich, Pavlov's Father
- Georgiy Yumatov as The Driver
- Gennadiy Yukhtin as Seryozha Pavlov
- Valentina Telegina as Old Woman Truck Driver
- Lev Borisov as The Soldier, Pavlov's Buddy
- Vladimir Kashpur as Ryaboy
- Valentin Abramov as Joking Soldier in Train
- Semyon Svashenko as Old Ukrainian
- Nina Menshikova as Telegraph Office Clerk
- Valentin Bryleev as The Soldier, Pavlov's Buddy
- Evgeniy Evstigneev as Truck Driver Who Changed His Mind
- Yuriy Dubrovin as Pavlov's Buddy
- Valentina Ananina as Alyosha's Neighbor (uncredited)
- Tatyana Barysheva as Pavlov's Neighbor (uncredited)
- Valentina Berezutskaya as Alyosha's Neighbor (uncredited)
- Aleksandra Danilova as Alyosha's Neighbor (uncredited)
- Mariya Kremneva as Elizaveta Petrovna (Pavlov's Wife)
Crew
- Grigoriy Chukhray · Director
- Grigoriy Chukhray · Writer
- Valentin Yezhov · Writer
- Mikhail Ziv · Composer
- Vladimir Nikolayev · Cinematographer
- Era Savelyeva · Cinematographer
- Mariya Timofeyeva · Editor
- Boris Nemechek · Production designer