Proverka na dorogakh (Trial on the Road) - Aleksej German

film d'azione e di dubbi morali, per alcuni, nel pieno della lotta sovietica contro i nazisti nelle seconda guerra mondiale.
il film, girato nel 1971, opera seconda di Aleksej German  fu messo sotto chiave fino al 1985, e solo allora è uscito in sala in Unione Sovietica, mai in Italia.
"mai dubitare" è la regola di tutte le dittature (e non solo), e dubitare ha un prezzo, ed è stato pagato tutto (il regista ha girato solo sei film dal 1969 al 2013, anno della morte).
il film è avvincente e interroga, Lazarev (il soldato che diserta dai tedeschi per unirsi ai soldati dell'armata rossa) viene sottoposto a prove sempre più difficili e rischiose.
penso che questo film sarebbe piaciuto a Fenoglio e a Levi, cercatelo e guardatelo, vale davvero molto - Ismaele

…Made in 1971, and freely adapted from stories by German’s writer father Yuri, it tells of former Red Army soldier Lazarev (Vladimir Zamanskii) who, after defecting to the Nazis, switches his allegiance back to Mother Russia. He is captured by the partisans and treated with great suspicion before being given the chance to prove his loyalty through a series of operations against the German occupiers.

What makes Trial of the Road particularly stand out is its hybridity, the way it successfully blends elements from both popular and art cinema. While the film is chiefly concerned with exploring the moral complexities of war – the terrible choices forced upon both soldiers and civilians at a time of worldwide conflict – it also indulges in violent spectacle through a series of action set pieces, climaxing in a raid on a Nazi train depot in which the protagonist, having previously attempted suicide, turns into something of a proto-Rambo figure, single-handedly machine-gunning scores of Nazis…

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…German’s first feature, Proverka na dorogakh(Trial on the Road), was finally shot in 1971; in retrospect it seems almost incredible that it was filmed at all. Soviet, indeed, Russian identity since World War Two had been founded on that bitterly won victory: the march to Berlin did more than any cult of personality to legitimate Stalin’s rule. German’s film undermines the fable of unwavering heroism and loyalty that sustained the self-perception of whole generations of Soviet citizens...

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…Inspired by a real case documented by Guerman’s father, Trial on the Road tells the story of a sergeant in the Red Army during World War II who has defected to the Nazis and, as the film begins, switches sides yet again. His loyalties questioned by all except for a benevolent commander, the soldier is forced to prove his patriotism via a series of increasingly perilous missions. The visual flourishes of Trial on the Road’s battle scenes even attracted the notice of some in Hollywood, but Guerman himself remains proudest of such innovative touches as actors who gaze directly into the camera. For daring to question the orthodoxy that World War II was a heroic struggle free of ironies and ambiguities, the film was shelved for fifteen years.

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