A Siege Diary

The film tells about the longest and the most severe siege in the whole history of mankind. World War II. In autumn 1941 the German troops completely surrounded one of the biggest Russian cities – Leningrad. 2,5 million civilians got trapped in the city. The German commandment decided not to storm Leningrad to avoid unnecessary losses.This film tells about the most difficult first winter of the siege, winter of 1941-1942. Severe frost, minus 30 degrees, extreme cold, no water supply and electricity, no public transport as the city was snowed in and paralyzed. Almost no pedestrians in the streets. A young woman Olga is walking through the whole city to her father. She has just buried her husband and is sure she is going to die soon out of hunger. Olga wants to see her father one last time to say goodbye and to ask for his forgiveness. This film is a blockade Odyssey where the audience together with the protagonist cross the whole city meeting different people on her way, facing difficulties and witnessing the state in which Leningrad and its residents found themselves. Undergoing unimaginable ordeals, Olga does manage to reach her father and after a conversation with him she understands that she is going to live on. This long way to death in the end turns for her into a return to life. (Moscow International Film Festival)