[Göteborg FF] Konchalovsky builds a look at communism from the silent accomplices, those who know nothing or want to know nothing. This social brainwashing causes the protagonist to long for Stalin, even though she faces the horrors of the KGB. The film has a frenetic pace, of constant dynamism, although in this case the 4: 3 screen, and its unbalanced frames, does not seem the best format for the story. There is a casual look that however does not hide the drama of the story.

Like watching black & white late night TV and you can't believe how good this movie is. This retelling of a massacre of striking factory workers in 1960s Soviet Russia is interesting thanks to the treatment given it by the director, Andrei Konchalovsky. The director's cool eye and black & white imagery bring out the warmth and color of a party woman who's searching both for her daughter and for the country she once loved.