A Star Media Production Maria Poroshina Olga Arntgoltz Konstantin Milovanov Viktor Horinyak Pavel Delong Anna Arefyeva Roman Kurtsyn, Olga Makeeva Yelena Dudich, Anastasiya Lukyanova Vitalina Bibliv, Nataliya Vasko Nikolay Boklan, Vitaliy Linetsky Directed by Dmitriy Petrun Written by Natalia Shimboretskaya In cooperation with Yelena Belenko Score by Daniil Yudelevich Director of Photography Aleksandr Krishtalovich Art Director Vadim Shinkaryov Sound Design by Yegor Irodov Edited by Valeriy Kuzmichev Executive Producers Anton Mikhaylov, Dmitriy Olenich Produced by Yekaterina Yefanova, Galina Balan-Timkina, Vlad Ryashin Officers’ Wives Show me your permit for residence in this apartment. MARCH 1948. MOSCOW I don’t have one.

You’ll have to come with us. You are detained for passport regime violation. These people don’t care who they let into the house. Look at this! This is desecration of our leader’s portrait! If I reported to… Don’t even think about it, or I’ll kill you. This is ridiculous. Maria was released at 2 PM. Next morning at 6 o’clock the district police officer was at our door. He comes every day, like a clockwork. My dear girl. He says she’s violating passport regime. It’s like a game of tug-of-war! When I’m done with this cop, he’ll have forgotten his way here. Our girl has a strong attitude, just like her mom. She’s the bravest one. With all due respect, Comrade Antonov, this is impossible. She’s a former prisoner. She isn’t allowed to be in Moscow at all. We can’t register her here. I’m a former prisoner myself. Well, our Motherland kindly forgives some people, but others… This conversation is over. Next time she goes straight to the railway station,

not the precinct. Hello. Who are you? She is your grandmother. Your other granny. ‒  Is she my granny, too? ‒  Of course, darling. Go. Finally. I lived to see them! Is the birthday boy not happy with us? Can’t we throw a big party once in 50 years? We should have invited people from the Academy, too. Katya, everything is perfect. Don’t make a fuss. They have already greeted me at the Academy. Better tell me this. What shall we tell the kids when they grow up and ask about their granny? We’ll tell them she’s Aleksey’s mother. She doesn’t mind. And when they are big enough, we’ll tell them the truth about Varya. ‒ I know a poem! ‒ OK, we’re listening. ‒ I’ll recite it for you. ‒ Viktor, sit down. Nadya, look at her! “I will wash all the windows for my mommy. I’m doing my best because I love her so much.”

Way to go! Well done, Nadya! I know many poems by heart. Do you want to hear one more? What a little artiste! She says she’s going to be a doctor, though. To cure her grandpa’s legs. So that he could walk without a cane. Also, I’ll cure the “new Granny’s” cough, so that she was happy and danced a lot. Glasha! We’ve been waiting for you. What happened? Something’s wrong with your family? Katya, I’m leaving. Yuri asked me to come with him. They are here, in Moscow, for a short stay. I’m leaving with them. I don’t get it. Does he want you to be their house help? I’ve been dreaming about him all my life. I’d do anything to be with him. And now a misfortune brought us together. His wife, Anna, died unexpectedly.

His daughter needs a mother. I’ve already packed my bags. I’m going. Hello. It happened so unexpectedly. Anna’s heart failed her. She has seen too many sufferings and took it too close to heart. We’re going to Leningrad. I’m sorry about taking your nanny from you. Maria! Fancy meeting you like this! Goodbye. ‒ Good luck. ‒ Goodbye. ‒ Take care. ‒ Bye. ‒ My darlings! ‒ Goodbye! Let’s go. We need to pack up, too. Once again… FOUR YEARS LATER. NOVEMBER 1952. FAR EAST I could have fetched it for you! You’re sick. It’s OK. Excuse me. All the pretty girls are going to Far East. How about a toast? You’ve had enough. ‒ Look at her! ‒ Comrade officer!

No hands. Why don’t you give me your love? My love might be too hot for you. Got it? Mom! Quick! It’s Viktor. He’s awake. He’s got fever again. Do you want me to bring more alcohol? We need to cool him down before a seizure starts again. Nadya, you’re like Dr. Doolittle. Lie still, you blunderhead. Mom, you have fever, too. You need to lie down. Come on. You have to drink more water. You can’t afford being ill. I don’t care about myself. I’m scared for them. Seven days on a train. We moved seven times in 3 years. My husband is already waiting for us at the new garrison. Have you been at war? You look too young. My husband was. These two are my front. ‒ Let go. ‒ Quiet.

Get off me! Help! Hush! Quiet! Let me go! Get off me! Yes, yes. It’s OK. Everything’s fine. You little bitch! Freeze! Goddamn it. Let me go! Mom! I’ll throw you from the train! Get off me, you Nazi bastard! Mom! I’ll show you who’s the Nazi bastard! Let me go! What are you doing here, little brat? Mom! I saw him beating up that lady. Let me go! Come on. So she’s your daughter, right? Scalding a Soviet officer? You little brat! Where do you think you’re going? ‒ Bring the trainmaster, quick. ‒ Open the door. Come on! Open that door! Open your mouth. Taldan. What a funny name for a station. – Seventh? – Yes. A telegram for Nadya Terekhova. Is she on board?

Yes. I’ve never seen telegrams delivered to a train before. – Are you Terekhova? – Yes. Your passport, please. It’s a military express telegram. – Goodbye. – Thanks. Did that bastard do something? It says I have to disembark at Bira station with the kids. He asked for your last name. And I saw him with the trainmaster, writing something down. Bira is almost one day from here. There’s nothing there, except for a prison. What if you don’t do it? Disobey an order? I can’t do that. – Mom? – What? Why did we get out of the train here? Did they throw us out? Nonsense. We did it because we needed to. – I’m thirsty. – Have patience. Mom, look! Is it for us? Come here. – Daddy! – Hurrah! Thank God. Are you freezing? You have cold noses, all three of you.

Why are you standing like this? Jump! Come on. – Get in the car. – In the car! – Take him. – Here. Nadya, careful. – Viktor. – He’s caught a virus. Are you cold? Come on, quick. The suitcase! Jump in! I’m so sorry about it. I didn’t know you were sick. Are you relocated again? No, we were here to get new cars. We have to stay a little longer, so I decided to send a telegram and meet you here. We can go back together. I want to finally arrive somewhere. I’m tired of the road. We’ll be home soon. Meet Izhilym, a trustworthy friend and a great driver. Our Army is proud of him. He’ll get us home in no time. There are so many beautiful places here. We’ve seen enough beautiful places on our way here. Mom and Viktor need a doctor, not scenery. Go! MOSCOW. MILITARY ACADEMY

Wait! Where is your delivery order? Where is it? Show it to me or unload the car. Who signed it? Mrs. Antonova, why do you talk to me like this? Look here. All the papers are in order. Here is the signature. Here. – Is it OK? – Yes. Have you loaded it up? OK, let’s go. – Hey. – Hi. Yegorov? Do you have a question again? Yes, sir. You gave us data on casualties in the Korean conflict. Does it mean that the Americans bring down planes without people on board? What do they mean, zero casualties? Sounds like a miracle. I gave you data from our sources. The enemy’s statistics may be different. I still can’t get it. We were fighting Hitler together. How come they became our enemy? Yegorov, you are dismissed. Or do you have more hard questions for me? Why Victory Day is not a red-letter day anymore? You should ask somebody else. OK, you can go. This class is over.

Yes, sir! Hello! – How do you do, Comrade Superintendant? – Hi. Nikolay, it’s medication time. Don’t give me that face. I promised the doctor you’ll take it on time. OK, give me your potions. Is this guy an agent provocateur? Or is he just curious? Or maybe he’s stupid. I’m not sure yet, Comrade. Superintendant. I never thought my wife will outrank me. And you definitely have more authority here than I do. Because I am a financially liable person. Are you unhappy with me working? I’d be bored to death sitting at home. At least, here I can see you from time to time. Don’t be shy, girls. Where shall we sleep? On the floor? Look. Surprise! Come inside. This is only temporary. They are constructing houses for us. This one is just…

I know! Frame-and-cracks! Frame-and-panels. They promised we’ll move into a new house soon. We’ve been through worse. – Hello. – Lyosha! You’re back. – The water is clean. – OK. – Hello. – Hi. – I’m at your service. – Thanks. I’ll show you around. Oh, I almost forgot! Rosa. Nadya. Nice to meet you. I see we’re going to have a regular kindergarten here. My two eldest are back in our room. Eldest? Well. Comrade Major is too young for so many kids. Get out of here, you husband stealing bitch! She’s always like this. His wife is here. Don’t even dream about him. She can dream on if she wants. Aida! Do you need me to tame your tongue? Never mind the sick woman. They let her stay here out of pity. She’s a dependent. Welcome to our close-knit little company. Thanks.

Come on. Bon appetite! [Give it to me!] – Sima, hi. – Hello. Are you new here? I’m the local doctor. – Nadya. – Sima. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you, too. It’s OK. The airfield is not far from here. They are roaring away all the time. It’s worse when we don’t hear them. It means somebody didn’t come back from a mission. From a combat flight. Didn’t you know? They are helping our North Korean friends against the US imperialists. Rosa! Your big mouth will lead you to exile one day. We’re at the back of beyond; they can’t send me much further. 7 years after the war ended, and we’re still losing lives. Rosa is bitter about the whole world. She doesn’t have a husband, that’s why. Run to the political department: a new Major has just arrived! Preen your feathers! Don’t be so mean. You have a husband, and so does she. I want one, too. But all the eligible bachelors were killed in the war. Yeah, that’s funny. OK, I’ll go preen my feathers. Rosa! I didn’t mean it like that.

– Where is the political department? – Come on, I’ll show you. So, our husbands are in the same flight. We should become good friends! How long have you been together? We met in 1941 and got married in ’42. You were both almost kids… My Timofey turned 20 exactly on June 22. He said, This war and I share the birthday. It won’t take my life. We met at the medical battalion, and he won’t leave me alone since then. Daddy! What are you staring at? – Hello. – Hi. – I’m Sima. – I’m Aleksey. Nice to meet you. I’m Timofey’s wife. Is this bed safe? I don’t know. It should not. It was built to last. How is the most important person in my life doing? Is he moving?

Now that you woke her up, she does. I’m sure it’s a girl. [Fire! Fire! Move it!] [We’re on fire! Help!] What’s going on? Wake up the kids. [Fire!] Stay here. Nadya! Baby, wake up! Leave me alone! Viktor, wake up! Come on, son. It’s OK. All clear! Go back to sleep. It’s Aida’s nightly aria. Her son was burnt to death. He was filling plane’s tanks with kerosene, so… Go back to bed. She lost her mind. Now she steals kerosene from everybody and hides it. Lie down. All this drama at night… Come on. Oh my God. It’s OK. Sleep. Our cloakroom ladies had a symposium.

Evidently, one of them had either a dream or a vision. Everything is supposed to change drastically in the next year. For everybody! Can you imagine? OK, I’d better go. Happy New Year! Happy holidays! Go. I’ll lock everything up. By the way, they are loading some parquet boards for comrade Ladiuk. They said it was for some construction site outside the Academy. They say you know about it. Bye! Stop! I said, stop! Wait! I won’t let you take it away! Your delivery note is forged! So was the previous one. This is a fraud! Go back. Comrade Antonov, can we pick up my Ninel, when Mrs. Antonov comes? – It’s not far from here. – No problem, Vasiliy. She’s afraid to walk home alone. People say things to her face, like, comrade Stalin will soon expel your people to Siberia. My mother-in-law already has her things packed… Women from the House Management come to our place to evaluate our furniture. If you don’t care about yourself, think about your husband. What if I say he was with us in it? They’ll fire him in a second

and send him back to Siberia. – I can’t believe you! – Idiot. What are you waiting for? Let’s go! Is this what we were ready to give our lives for? How is it different from Nazis? Vasiliy, you’re exaggerating. I’m not worried for myself. It’s about my wife and mother-in-law. In times like this, we are all Jews, even if we aren’t. I don’t know. Maybe I’m wrong. I wonder where Katya is. Let’s drive through the yard. Stop! Katya! Katya! [OK. Come on!] [Nadya, don’t do this!] [I’ll wash them myself later.] [Where’s champagne?] Get out of here. We don’t have a bowl big enough, so we have to use a drawer. Nobody wants to settle down here. We’re all waiting to move out.

It has been more than 2 years. They keep giving us promises. Here. The cucumbers. They say it can happen any day. Do you hear me, Nadya? And nothing happens. Ladies, where are the plates? I’ll knock his teeth in! They’ll court-martial you, Lyosha. I have 73 combat flights on my record. Let him check my logbook! Over 1000 logged flight hours! Does he even know what a combat flight is? Does he? That’s exactly what he wants — for you to snap. Am I supposed to take everything he dishes out? “We don’t trust you politically.” This swivel-chair warrior! As our technical assistant says, don’t look for hair on chicken eggs. He doesn’t like you; that’s all. I’m coming! Just a second, Nadya. We’ll get changed and come. Tima, have you found an accordion? I’ll play tonight. OK, who’s dead? Sima, Tima, let’s dance! [Help yourself.]

Tima, ask me for a dance. Comrade Colonel… Shall we? [Why are you so sad? It’s New Year’s Eve...] Come on. You can’t smoke in here. Fire hazard. Terekhova. If you say a word about what happened on the train, your husband will rot in jail. And I’ll make sure you daughter ends up at a juvenile prison. I’m warning you. Nadya, come on. What’s wrong? Are you sick? Is it the baby? – No. – What Yartsev again? Never mind him. He’ll forget about it. I wonder what got into him. Guys! The bells are chiming! The bells! Nadya, quick! – Do you need a personal invitation? – Come on. As you were! Lie back. Katya… What happened there? I told you. The truck was backing out of the yard. I was in the way. They couldn’t see me.

It was all my fault. What I can’t understand is why you’re lying. OK, whatever. The good thing is you won’t work there or anywhere else anymore. [Moscow is speaking.] [To all Party members and all working people of the Soviet Union.] [Dear comrades and friends. The Central Committee of the Communist Party] [of the Soviet Union, the Council of Ministers of the USSR, and the Presidium] [of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR announce with deep grief] [to the party and all workers] [that on March 5 at 9.50 p.m.] [after a serious illness…] Nadya, why are you standing here? It’s too quiet. Are there no flights today?

There should be. Maybe someone… – Take this. – Mom, where are you going? […the wise leader and teacher of the Communist party and of the Soviet people…] Nadya? What’s wrong? […the Great October Socialist Redvolution, the founder of the first socialist…] Lyosha! – Nadya! – Lyosha! What happened? What’s wrong? It’s OK… Lyosha! Where is… Hush. Calm down. – Here. Let me check your pulse. – Oh God. Are you stupid or what? Who told you Lyosha hadn’t come back? Yartsev demoted him to a biplane. He’s delivering mail to faraway regions. He didn’t want you to know. Let me take a look at you. Pasha, we need to drive her to the regional center. What? It’s 300 km from here. It’s a transverse presentation. She needs a Caesarian section.

Nadya, get up. Let’s go. Come on. Hold on. OK. Go! Oh God! – Nadya. – It hurts so much! Lyosha! Your Nadya was here, and suddenly she went into labor. They took her to the regional center. Thanks. Izhilym is driving her. Sima is with her. Leave me here! I can’t stand it anymore. I can’t! Izhilym, drive as fast as you can. It’s not going well. Hold on! Nadya. Don’t yell; conserve your strength. Breath! Lyosha, it’s really bad. We need to go faster. – It’s OK. – Mommy! Look, a plane. Why is it going so low? Doctor, we have two brain strokes here. One has just arrived, and the other one is Kolchin from Ward 7.

The Party leader is dead. It’s a big deal. I’ll be right with you. [Maybe some hotshot has got a heart attack, and they decided to fly him here.] Lyosha, quick. – Miss! – She’s in labor. Period without amniotic fluid — 3 hours. Transverse presentation. Do you have surgeons? Yes, we do! No need to shout. We’re not deaf. This way. Take care of the kids! Please! What are you talking about, my quiet girl? Are you saying goodbye to me? We’re already at the hospital. You’ll be fine. BP is falling. We need more chlorethyl. She might not cope with it. Beginning extraction. Clamp. Here. The girl looks weak. You can close. Fire! [Fire!] [Quick! Get out!] Grandma! Granny!

Grandma! Granny! Aida is inside! Viktor! She’ll burn alive! Granny! Aidа! – Stop! Nadya, stop! – Granny! – Nadya! – Wait! – Nadya! – Aida! Nadya, where are you going? Come back!