Le voleur et l'enfant

A post war tale of World War II, a woman and her fatherless son get acquainted and affectionate to a soldier, who in turns out to be an imposter. Perhaps the second best Russian language film I've watched after "Kolya," it gives a compassionate and observant account of emotions seen through a child and his mother. It's cold and poignant yet human and witty in its depiction of emotions, which is beautifully filmed and masterly acted taking the story to various cities, citing an epitome to nomadic life imparted by the agonies of war. Not as buyest to "Life Is Beautiful," it still mesmerizes through its impeccable performances and a superb depiction of emotions.

Rating: 3 stars out of 4

In the icy wastelands of Yaroslavl in Stalin's Soviet Union, a young woman, Katja (Ekaterina Rednikova), gives birth on the side of a dirt track. The year is 1946, the war has left the country stricken with poverty, her husband will soon die and everything is ever so slightly grim.

Six years later Katja and her young son, Sanya, are still wandering, looking for a place to settle and someone to take care of them. On a crowded train travelling across country, Katya exchanges steamy glances with a vigorous young army officer, Tolyan (Vladimir Mashkov), and by the next stop, she, the officer and Sanya have become an instant family. Only one problemo. Tolyan is, in actual fact, a thieving scoundrel with more than hint of brutality mixed in with his charm.

Of course, from there on in everything goes from bad to worse. Let's face it have you ever seen a Russian slapstick comedy or even, for that matter, an Eastern European one. The Thief doesn't try to imitate the romanticism of Hollywood's more famous tales of con men - Bonnie and Clyde, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting. No, this is stark reality, beautifully shot and faintly reminiscent of the masterpiece Ashes and Diamonds or indeed something from Charles Dickens. Except without the happy ending.

The Thief is always watchable mainly because of its two male leads. The wide-eyed scared little boy played by Misha Philipchuk possesses a wonderfully expressive face and Vladimir Mashkov revels in playing the violent rogue, who rolls razor blades in his mouth for light kicks. The relationship between these two serves as the core of the film. At first the boy, who is haunted by images of his dead father, refuses to give in to Tolyan's stern demand that he address him as "Daddy," yet hesitantly grows fascinated by Tolyan's slick manner and tyrannical brutality.

As for Katja? Once the lust departs and she realises Tolyan is no soldier, but a liar and common thief, she is bitterly disappointed, yet her inability to leave him taints Sanya and eventually leads to tragedy for them all. Their plight is only worsened by the tyranny of communist Russia, where Josef Stalin pervades his people and the landscape, like, of course, Big Brother. Tolyan wears a tattoo of 'laughing boy' Stalin on his chest. Everyone toasts to Comrade Stalin. We become privy to Stalin's Russia in documentary footage. In fact as a harsh, relentless father figure for the uncertain young Sanya, Tolyan also serves as an emblematic double for Stalin and his ruthless domination over a deluded nation. However, Tolyan may be brute, but he comes off lightly in relation to the procession of vicious, corrupt soldiers who claim they're "not moved by whimpering or by kids" and in one unforgettable scene force "criminals" to run in the snow past bloodhounds, on the way to the trucks that will eventually take them to Siberia.

The Thief is moving, without being overly sentimental. It is no surprise that this stunning Russian movie was the nominee of that country for a 1997 American Oscar.

• Ben Walsh

I thoroughly enjoyed this film and would recommend it to anyone just for the fantastic expressions of little Sanya's big blue eyes! For those who enjoy high caliber independent and foreign films, this is a piece of gold not to be missed.

This was the first Russian movie I was able to view and, I have to admit, I was impressed. It was one of the best movies I have ever seen.

Mikhail Filipchuk as 6-year-old "Sanya" gave a heart warming performance as a boy who lost his father to a war when his mother was only three months pregnant with him. Getting to know his new step-father and gaining his acceptance wasn't an easy task for him. Especially after his step-father is given 7 years in prison for his thievery.

In the end, 12-year-old "Sanya", played by Dmitri Chigaryov, is in an orphanage after his mother's death. The movie takes a strange twist...and...in the end...."Sanya" gets his justice.

Very enjoyable, indeed.

Pavel Chukhraj's award winning film THE THIEF is one of those special films that should be owned and revisited - like a favorite novel or poem or symphony. Chukhraj both wrote and directed this tale/fable set in Stalinist Russia, a story which encompasses the impact on a child of loss of a father in the war, the appalling living standards in the communes during the 1950s where multiple families and comrades shared space and survived the lack of privacy, and the extents to which people will go to survive what fate has dealt them and the sad sequelae that follow.

The story opens on the cold steppes of Russia where Katya (Yekaterina Rednikova) gives birth to a son Sanya (Misha Philipchuk) in the mud of a country in disrepair in 1946. Narrated by the adult Sanya we next see Katya and Sanya on board a train where they encounter a handsome soldier Tolyan (Vladimir Mashkov), a seemingly gentle man who immediately bonds with the two 'refugees'. The remainder of the story deals with the fact that Tolyan is a thief and causes disruptive moves of his 'family' as he plunges them deeper into the hole of his crimes. At times he is harsh with Sanja, at time he is protective and instructive as a surrogate father, teaching Sanya the cruel rules of survival. He is finally imprisoned, Katya dies from an infection following an abortion, and Sanya grows into his teen years in orphanages, dreaming of his real father, wondering about Tolyan. They two make a final surprise encounter that leads to the ending of the story.

The actors are exceptional, the supporting cast is particularly fine, and the cinematography and set designs are something beyond description. The eyes of Sanya (those of Misha Philipchuk) will haunt you and beckon return to this most impressive and touching film. Highly recommended. Grady Harp