The Commissar

The Commissar (1967) is a Soviet war drama you can watch online on iFILM, directed by Alexander Askoldov and based on Vasily Grossman's story "In the Town of Berdichev." The film was completed in 1967 and immediately locked away by Soviet censors for twenty years.

Red Army commissar Klavdia Vavilova (Nonna Mordyukova) is a hardened cavalry officer who finds herself pregnant in the middle of the Civil War. She's quartered with Yefim Magazannik, a Jewish tinsmith played by Rolan Bykov with such unguarded kindness that he quietly becomes the film's emotional center. Battle sounds stay just outside the walls; inside, the noise of children and ordinary family life chips away at Vavilova's iron composure. Vasily Shukshin appears in a supporting role, adding another layer to an already dense film.

When The Commissar was finally screened in 1988, it took home the Silver Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival. Askoldov never directed again. Watch it online on iFILM.