The First Teacher (1965)

Первый учитель

A young Red Army veteran comes to a remote Kyrgyz village to open its first school, against the will of the old ways.

★ Volpi Cup for Best Actress, Venice Film Festival 1966

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Year
1965
Director
Andrei Konchalovsky
Starring
Bolot Beishenaliev, Natalya Arinbasarova, Darkul Kuyukova
Genre
Drama
Running time
1 h 39 min
Based on
The novella by Chingiz Aitmatov
Language
Russian, English subtitles
Studio
Mosfilm

About the film

In the early 1920s Duishen, a former Red Army soldier with little education himself, arrives in a Kyrgyz village and sets up a school in an old stable.

The children love him, especially the orphan girl Altynai, but the village elders and the rich bai fight his ideas. When Altynai is promised as a second wife to a powerful man, the teacher must defend her.

Konchalovsky's first feature is harsh and beautiful, shot in the stark landscapes of Kyrgyzstan.

Did you know?

  • It was Andrei Konchalovsky's first feature film.
  • Natalya Arinbasarova won the Best Actress award at the 1966 Venice festival for her role as Altynai.
  • It is based on a story by Chingiz Aitmatov, who also wrote Jamilya.

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