Siberiade (Complete and Uncut Version)

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Spanning more than six decades of Russian history encompassing the Bolshevik Revolution, Siberiade is Andrei Konchalovsky's (Runaway Train) passionate and ambitious examination of the Soviet spirit, as represented in two families of opposing ideologies: the proletariat Ustyuzhanins and the wealthy Solomins. Through their multi-generational conflicts and alliances, Konchalovsky dramatizes the evolution of the Russian people, bound together by the common struggle for survival and faithfulness to the motherland. Yet Siberiade is more than an immense historical epic. It is a hauntingly beautiful spectacle reminiscent of the finest woks of visionary filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky (whose Andrei Roublev was co-written by Konchalovsky). Though cinematographer Levan Paatashvili's lens, the Siberian wilderness becomes a mesmerizing universe unto itself, whose forests and swamps are populated by near-mythical characters. Tied to ancient tradition, these spirits seek to protect the countryside from the ravaging forces of time and technology. When a rural village is invaded by an oil-drilling crew that encroaches upon their hallowed burial grounds, generating conflict between ancestral reverence for the earth and government-ordained industrialization. Siberiade comes to an explosive and unforgettable climax.
This ambitious 1979 Russian film attempts no less a feat than the encapsulation of the tumultuous history of Russia in the 20th century. Written and directed by Andrei Konchalovsky (Runaway Train, Tango and Cash), the film weaves an engrossing tale of three generations of two Russian families in the remote region of Siberia, each trying in their own way to find fulfillment in their lives as they seek to reconcile themselves with the ever-changing landscape of their homeland. Sandwiched between the chaotic events of the First and Second World Wars, as well as the Russian Revolution of 1917, the people of the small village find themselves at the cusp of great changes, from communications to the expanding infrastructure and the changes that brings, to the discovery of oil and the riches and perils that come with it. Konchalovsky juxtaposes archival footage with stunning cinematography and contrasts the assaultive changes of the modern world with the timeless impulses of family and the enduring need to adapt and survive. Reminiscent of such great films as Giant and 1900, Siberiade is a visually adept and stunningly effective epic about the price of a country's history on its people. --Robert Lane