On Thin Ice (1966 film)

On Thin Ice (Russian: По тонкому льду, romanizedPo tonkomu ldu) is a 1966 Soviet spy film directed by Damir Vyatich-Berezhnykh, based on Georgiy Bryantsev's 1961 book, which provided the first authoritative public description of counterintelligence group GUKR (SMERSH).[1][2][3]

On Thin Ice
Poster
Directed byDamir Vyatich-Berezhnykh
Written byIvan Bakurinsky
Based onPo tonkomu ldu
by Georgiy Bryantsev
StarringViktor Korshunov
Feliks Yavorskiy
Alexey Eybozhenko
Mikhail Gluzsky
Izolda Izvitskaya
Aleksey Alekseev
CinematographyNikolay Olonovskiy
Edited byAleksandra Kamagorova
Music byMieczysław Weinberg
Production
company
Distributed byGosfilm
Release date
  • 26 September 1966 (1966-09-26)
Running time
175 minutes
CountrySoviet Union
LanguageRussian

The film tells the story of two NKVD agents who fight foreign spies in the Oryol Oblast before and during the Second World War.[4]

Plot

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The film was created to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Soviet Union's state security services.

The story focuses on the efforts of Soviet counterintelligence operatives in their battle against German espionage during the pre-war years and against German forces during the Great Patriotic War. At the heart of the film is the story of three counterintelligence agents—Bragin, Trapeznikov, and Bezrodny. In 1939, the trio begins tracking Colonel Dunkel, a German intelligence operative, but he manages to escape. With the outbreak of war, the agents are tasked with locating an enemy intelligence center and disrupting its operations. Their mission brings them face-to-face with Colonel Dunkel once again, ultimately resulting in his capture and successful transfer across the front lines.

Release

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On Thin Ice was released in the Soviet Union on 26 September 1966.[5]

It was the highest-grossing film in the Soviet Union for 1966, with 42.5 million tickets sold.[6]

References

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  1. ^ Kozhevnikov, A. IU (January 15, 2004). Крылатые фразы и афоризмы отечественного кино. ОЛМА Медиа Групп. ISBN 9785765425671 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ Раззаков, Федор (September 5, 2017). Скандалы советской эпохи. Litres. ISBN 9785425088208 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ "East Europe". East Europe Publishing Company. January 15, 1965 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ "Он смело шёл по тонкому льду | "Открытая газета"". www.opengaz.ru.
  5. ^ "Po kruchym lodzie / Po tonkomu ldu" – via www.filmweb.pl.
  6. ^ Kudryavtsev, Sergey (4 July 2006). "Отечественные фильмы в советском кинопрокате" [Domestic Films in Soviet Film Distribution]. LiveJournal (in Russian). Retrieved 4 February 2019.
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