Raisa Puzhnaya

Based on the novel of the same name by Mikhail Sholokhov and we follow the Melekhov family of Tatarsk through difficult times just before World War 1.

The first interest of the film is its depiction of a rural community just before and after WWI (yes, the time of the Russian Revolution). However, unlike other Soviet films, "Women of Ryazan", while being lyrical and beautifully photographed, has a real plot and never leaves it aside. The plot is mostly about the fate of two women, the first being a dutiful (if not submissive) doomed soldier's wife, the latter, more lively and energetic, who will openly defy the old way of life. (imdb)

A travelling circus troupe during the Civil War. A kommissar tries to transfer the wagon into an agit-prop van. The Whites conquer the town. The kommissar hides among the artists. (imdb)