The Peasant Women of Ryazan (1927)

Directed by Olga Preobrazhenskaya and Ivan Pravov; script by Boris Altschuler and Olga Vishnevskaya; camera by Konstantin Kuznetsov; movie poster by Yakov Ruklevsky.

The action takes place between 1916 and 1918. A beautiful peasant girl called Anna marries Ivan, the son of rich parents. When Ivan goes off to fight in the First World War, his father Vasily makes advances on Anna. Life at home becomes impossible for Anna, particular when she gives birth to a child, and receives the news that her husband is missing presumed dead. Ivan unexpectedly returns home and spurns his wife, who commits suicide. Anna’s wretched and unhappy life is contrasted to that of Ivan’s progressive sister Vasilisa, who welcomes the revolution. Popular in the Soviet Union, the film was one of the first to be partially sounded in 1929.