The first indisputable masterpiece of post-Stalin cinema, The Cranes Are Flying , directed by Mikhail Kalatozov tells a story of love, betrayal, and renewal against the background of World War II. Josephine Woll’s beautifully written account of this film reviews its presentation of war, its redefinition of Soviet ideas of heroism, its enigmatic central protagonist, Veronika and her paradoxical decision to marry one man while never ceasing to love another. Woll also details its reception in the Soviet Union and the West, where it was widely distributed and acclaimed.