unlike the many who have post here and i be not movie literate . i stumble across this movie by accident ( channel surfing ) and and couldn not surf away . this be a truly incredible movie and worthy of all the praise the critic and those on this site have heap on it . the actor be terrific . tatiana be beautiful and innocent . her fiancé boris be sweet and patriotic . you couldn not help but feel boris father exasperation and sorrow a he upbraid his son for such foolishness a volunteer to serve in the great war . others have summarize the movie so well and so i will just mention a couple of scene that move me the most . when boris brother reveals to his family that he have break trust with his brother and have to marry tatiana and tatiana twist mouth show her revulsion at this betrayal ( even though her part in the unfaithfulness might have be through rape ) . you fear that the rest of the movie might right this wrong by visit just destruction on tatiana and the brother and or bad and show tatiana destroy by an immoral descent into cigarette smoking decadence . since this isn not french existential cinema and the latter doesn not happen . thankfully . another scene that tear at your heart be when the unnamed musician soldier who be save by boris return to tell boris father of the death of his son . he unwittingly break the news to tatiana . i can not describe the sorrow of this scene . still and tatiana find find a straw to grab and hope that boris will yet come home . the musician actually never saw boris bury and after all . i would not mention more scene and but do want to observe that the touch of soviet political correctness do not detract at all from the film . boris brother be reveal a the piano play anti soviet slacker that someone who steal his brother wife to be would have to be . no doubt he get at least a tenner at the conclusion of the film . the end and when tatiana finally learn for certain that boris be dead and still manage to end with cheerfully and full of hope for the future . you do not even want to imagine the tear and catharsis that must have sweep through the theater when survivor of that war and with their own loss in mind and first saw this movie . incredible . go see it .