11. Ballad of a Soldier ( Ballada o soldate )
Year of Release: 1960
Overall Rating: 3.1 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Drama
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Director: Grigori Chukhrai
Actors: Vladimir Ivashov, Yevgeni Urbansky, Nikolai Kryuchkov, Zhanna Prokhorenko, Antonina Maksimova, Elza Lezhdey
Plot: When a Russian private is granted a medal for bravery during WWII, he request that instead of the medal, he be given four-days leave to visit his mother. During these four days we witness the world through the man's eyes, from helping fellow soldiers to falling in love.
12. Mother and Son ( Mat i syn )
Year of Release: 1998
Overall Rating: 3.2 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Drama
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Aleksandr Sokurov
Actors: Aleksei Ananishnov, Gudrun Geyer
Plot: Simple yet poignant - as a son dutifully cares for his dying mother, the film takes on a deeper, spiritual meaning as we visit the cottage and surrounding countryside.
13. Leviathan ( Leviafan )
Year of Release: 2014
Overall Rating: 3.2 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Drama
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Andrey Zvyagintsev
Actors: Aleksey Serebryakov, Elena Lyadova, Roman Madyanov, Vladimir Vdovichenkov, Kristina Pakarina, Anna Ukolova
14. Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors ( Tini zabutykh predkiv )
Year of Release: 1967
Overall Rating: 3.1 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Drama/Historical
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Sergei Parajanov
Actors: Ivan Mikolajchuk, Larisa Kadochnikova, Tatyana Bestayeva, Spartak Bagashvili, Nikolai Grinko, Leonid Yengibarov
Plot: Taking place in a Carpathian village, the film follows Ivan as he finds love and tragedy - while the lively village changes with the seasons, holidays and events around them.
15. Ivan the Terrible, Part I ( Ivan Groznyy I )
Year of Release: 1947
Overall Rating: 2.9 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Biography/Drama
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Sergei M. Eisenstein
Actors: Nikolai Cherkasov, Lyudmila Tselikovskaya, Serafima Birman, Mikhail Nazvanov, Mikhail Zharov, Pavel Kadochnikov
Plot: In this first part of the two-part life of Ivan IV (Ivan the Terrible) we explore his early days after he crowns himself Tsar of Russia and beings cultivating his power and reclaiming lost territory. From various campaigns to an illness that nearly takes his life to threats from the aristocracy and his own family - he deftly plays his hand to keep his title.
16. Cuckoo, The ( Kukushka )
Year of Release: 2003
Overall Rating: 3.0 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Drama/War
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Director: Aleksandr Rogozhkin
Actors: Anni-Kristiina Juuso, Ville Haapasalo, Viktor Bychkov, Aleksei Kashnikov, Aleksei Panzheyev, Vladimir Matveyev
17. Alexander Nevsky ( Aleksandr Nevskiy )
Year of Release: 1939
Overall Rating: 2.8 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Action/Drama
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Sergei M. Eisenstein, Dmitri Vasilyev
Actors: Nikolai Cherkasov, Nikolai Okhlopkov, Andrei Abrikosov, Dmitri Orlov, Vasili Novikov, Sergei Blinnikov
18. Kidnapping Caucassian Style ( Kavkazskaya plennitsa, ili Novye priklyucheniya Shurika )
Year of Release: 1967
Overall Rating: 3.1 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Adventure/Comedy
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Leonid Gaidai
Actors: Aleksandr Demyanenko, Natalya Varley, Ruslan Akhmetov, Yuri Nikulin, Georgiy Vitsin, Yevgeni Morgunov
19. Return, The ( Vozvrashcheniye )
Year of Release: 2004
Overall Rating: 2.9 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Drama
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Andrei Zvyagintsev
Actors: Vladimir Garin, Ivan Dobronravov, Konstantin Lavronenko, Natalya Vdovina, Lyubov Kazakova, Aleksei Suknovalov
20. Burnt by the Sun ( Utomlyonnye solntsem )
Year of Release: 1995
Overall Rating: 2.9 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Drama
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Nikita Mikhalkov
Actors: Oleg Menshikov, Nikita Mikhalkov, Ingeborga Dapkunaite, Nadezhda Mikhalkova, André Oumansky, Vyacheslav Tikhonov
