SholokhovFor all those who survived,
those who did not,
and those who will come after...
Mikhail SHOLOKHOV
THEY FOUGHT
FOR THElR MOTHERLAND
Honored Artist ofthe RSFSR
Vassily SHUKSHlN - Pyotr Lopakhin
People's Artist ofthe USSR
Vyacheslav TlKHONOV - Nikolai Streltsov
People's Artist ofthe USSR
Sergey BONDARCHUK - lvan Zvyagintsev
Geogry BURKOV -
Alexander Kopytovsky
People's Artist ofthe USSR
Yuri NlKULlN - Private Nekrasov
People's Artist ofthe RSFSR
lvan LAPlKOV - Sergeant Poprischenko
Honored Artist ofthe RSFSR
Nikolai GUBENKO - Lieutenant Goloschyokov
Andrei ROSTOTSKY -
LanceYcorporal Kochetygov
Honored Artist ofthe Ukr.SSR -
Nikolai SHUTKO - Cook Lisichenko
Screen Adaptation and Direction by
Sergey BONDARCHUK
Director of Photography
Vadim YUSOV
Production Designer
Felix YASYUKEVlCH
Music by
Vyacheslav OVCHlNNlKOV
Director
Vladimir DOSTAL
Also starring
Yevgeny SAMOlLOV, Nonna MORDYUKOVA
July 1942
Hey, it's time for a halt,
isn't it?
You said it. Since morning we've
marched 25 miles at least.
l'd love a drink of cold spring water.
Half a bucketful for every man here.
Regiment! Forward march!
The war had reached even this
remote farm lost in the vast steppes
near the river Don.
You drink that water like
you read your son's letters.
You read a little bit, then you
put it away to read more later.
As for me, l don't like to drag
things out.
l just haven't got the patience.
Give me the bucket,
or you'll get swollen.
Nikolai, the only letters you get
are from your son.
l never saw you with one from your
wife. Are you a widower?
l've got no wife.
We're separated.
When did it happen?
About a year ago.
l see...
Who has the children, you or her?
You have two, don't you?
Their mother's got them.
So you've left your wife, Nikolai?
No.
lt was she who walked out on me.
The very first day of the war...
l got home...
after a business trip and found
that she had gone.
She left only a note, and that's all.
The bitch. Had she found herself
another guy?
l don't know.
Chances are she had.
There's just no understanding
women.
You're a good-looking man after all.
You had a good income
as an agronomist.
What the hell did she want?
Did she think about the kids?
Petya, let me have a smoke.
Have you been to the medics?
l have.
- So how is it?
- Nothing doing.
- Then why'd you go over?
- Looking for anyone l knew.
There's one pretty little doctor there.
Couldn't you get to her?
- l didn't even try to.
- Oh, don't give me that!
l spotted you shining your shoes
and polishing that medal of yours.
But, of course, some of those
wounded have snappy medals too.
You nut!
With the crud you cook,
nobody's interested in sex.
Boy, I've lost so much weight,
I haven't had a wet dream lately.
Me neither.
You're rolling that thick enough
to choke a mule, take it easy, eh?
Half of that will be plenty.
I don't know how to roll 'em any
finer when it's your tobacco.
- Take some out!
- No, no, it's fine like this.
l'll bet it is, with my tobacco.
I roll 'em a bit finer
when it's my own tobacco.
What are you dreaming about, hero?
My dreams are glum.
Like that crap
you feed us.
I hope you slept well last night,
dear Mister Streltsov?
Talk with the cook,
my head's gonna split.
I see.
Depressed
on account of our retreat,
this heat and your headache.
Let's go swimming, Kolia,
we'll have to start out soon.
Hi.
So that's you, fop!
Come on for a swim with us.
We'll get some of that crap off you.
Now that's what l call a tractor,
Nikolai! lt's got real power!
Did you see that thing
it's pulling?
Well, this engine could pull three
combines at once, on my word!
Go ahead, start 'er up!
He's gonna be here all day, let's go.
Nekrasov, why aren't you swimming?
l've got malaria.
You're in a bad mood today, Nikolai.
How come?
l don't see any good
reason to be happy.
You don't see any reason?
You're alive, aren't you?
And that's a good reason.
Just