Directed by Kira Muratova • 1971 • USSR/Ukraine

Ukrainian auteur Kira Muratova’s sophomore directorial effort, The Long Farewell was shelved by censors until 1987, then heralded as a lost masterpiece. This simple tale of maternal jealousy and filial rebellion is transformed by Muratova into a thrillingly odd drama full of visual sophistication, off-kilter music, and exquisite camerawork. Zinaida Sharko is heartbreaking as the mother on the edge of a nervous breakdown, and Oleg Karavaychuk’s piano score is a minor masterpiece of its own.

THE LONG FAREWELL • ДОЛГИЕ ПРОВОДЫ
Directed by Kira Muratova
Written by Natalya Ryazantseva and Kira Muratova
Cinematography by Gennady Karyuk
Music by Oleg Karavaychuk
Starring: Zinaida Sharko, Oleg Vladimirsky

In Russian with English subtitles