Best Russian Movies of All Time: Soviet and Modern Classics

By Mohammad Shoaib

Updated Oct 7, 2026Published Dec 6, 20219 min read

The best Russian movies of all time include Stalker (1979, Andrei Tarkovsky), The Cranes Are Flying (1957, Mikhail Kalatozov), Battleship Potemkin (1925, Sergei Eisenstein), Come and See (1985, Elem Klimov) and Burnt by the Sun (1994, Nikita Mikhalkov). For modern Russian cinema, start with Andrey Zvyagintsev’s The Return, Leviathan and Loveless.

Without any doubt, Russian cinema has one of the most influential traditions in world film, from the silent epics of Sergei Eisenstein to modern festival winners by Andrey Zvyagintsev. Soviet and Russian films have won the Palme d’Or at Cannes, the Golden Lion at Venice and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. This guide covers some of the best Russian and Soviet movies of all time, with the year, director and the reason each film matters.

Greatest Russian Films of All Time

Russian and Soviet cinema ranges from slow, philosophical art films to war dramas, comedies and fast action films, so there is a starting point for most viewers. Several of the films below appear in the Sight and Sound greatest-films polls published by the British Film Institute.

If you know a little bit about the history of Russian films, you might already know that the Soviet Union ran a state film industry with large studios such as Mosfilm, which produced Battleship Potemkin, The Cranes Are Flying and Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears.

The four films below are the original picks on this page; a wider list with awards follows after them. There are Russian movies like Loveless that are worth your time, including Andrey Zvyagintsev’s 2017 drama Loveless, which won the Jury Prize at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

1] Stalker

Stalker (1979) is a Soviet science fiction drama directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, with a screenplay by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky loosely based on their 1972 novel Roadside Picnic. Western reviews were mixed when it was released in May 1979, but Stalker is now regarded as one of the greatest films ever made: it placed 43rd in the 2022 Sight and Sound critics’ poll and 14th in the directors’ poll. The production was difficult, because a year of footage shot on unusable film stock had to be almost entirely reshot with a new cinematographer, Alexander Knyazhinsky.

Stalker combines science fiction with philosophical and psychological drama, so it suits viewers who enjoy slow, reflective cinema. Because film directors ranked it 14th of all time in 2022, it is an obvious choice for anyone interested in filmmaking.

The story follows three men, the guide known as the Stalker and his two clients (a writer and a professor), who enter an extremely restricted zone where the known principles of physics are not followed. They are in search of a place called “Room” where the deepest wishes of each one of them can come true.

2] The Cranes Are Flying

The Cranes Are Flying (1957) is a Soviet war drama directed and produced by Mikhail Kalatozov at Mosfilm, written by Viktor Rozov and starring Tatiana Samoilova and Aleksey Batalov. The film shows the damage the Second World War did to ordinary Soviet lives, and it won the Palme d’Or at the 1958 Cannes Film Festival, the only Soviet film to win that award.

The Cranes Are Flying had a profound impact on Soviet cinema and is a natural first choice for viewers new to classic Soviet film. The story takes a heartbreaking turn, so expect an emotional watch.

3] What Do Men Talk About?

What Men Talk About (2010) is a Russian comedy road movie written and directed by Dmitriy Dyachenko, featuring the actors of the comic theatre company Quartet. The film is based on the company’s stage play about the conversations middle-aged men have about women, movies and aluminum forks. In simpler words, this movie is about four friends and what they talk about regarding their wives, friends, and girlfriends.

After a successful cinema release, a follow-up titled What Men Still Talk About was announced. Much of the humor is in the Russian dialogue, so a good subtitle track matters for non-Russian speakers.

4] Hardcore Henry

Hardcore Henry (2015) is a Russian-American action thriller written and directed by Ilya Naishuller, in his feature directorial debut, and produced by Timur Bekmambetov among others. The entire film is shot from the first-person perspective of its hero.

The story revolves around a man who wakes up in the morning and remembers nothing. A woman who says she is his wife tells him he has been turned into a cyborg. The cast includes Sharlto Copley, Danila Kozlovsky, Haley Bennett and Tim Roth. Hardcore Henry opened in Russia on April 7, 2016, and in the United States on April 8, 2016; it drew mixed reviews in the US and a warmer response in Russia.

Conclusion

These four films are a good starting point for Russian and Soviet cinema, from art-house classics to a modern genre film. The list does not end there: the sections below add more acclaimed titles with their years, directors and major awards. Watching one film from each era is a simple way to see how Russian filmmaking has changed over a century.

More Acclaimed Russian and Soviet Films

The four picks above are a short list. The films below fill in the rest of the century, from silent cinema to recent festival winners. Each one has a verified award or poll ranking behind it.

Battleship Potemkin (1925)

Battleship Potemkin is a Soviet silent film by Sergei Eisenstein that dramatizes the 1905 mutiny of the crew of the Russian battleship Potemkin. The film is a textbook example of Soviet montage editing, and its Odessa Steps sequence has been widely recreated. It was placed in the top 10 of many earlier Sight and Sound critics’ polls.

Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears (1980)

Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears is a Soviet romantic comedy-drama directed by Vladimir Menshov, written by Valentin Chernykh and starring Vera Alentova and Aleksey Batalov. It won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1981. It is the most accessible title on this list for viewers who do not want a war film or art cinema.

Come and See (1985)

Come and See is Elem Klimov’s anti-war film about the German occupation of Byelorussia, seen through the eyes of a teenage partisan named Flyora. Klimov fought eight years of Soviet censorship before he could make it in full, and it was the last film he directed. Its depiction of Nazi atrocities is extremely harrowing, so it is not a casual watch.

Burnt by the Sun (1994)

Burnt by the Sun is a Russian drama that Nikita Mikhalkov directed, co-wrote, produced and starred in. It follows a senior Red Army officer and his family during Stalin’s Great Purge of the late 1930s. It won the Grand Prix at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

Andrey Zvyagintsev’s The Return, Leviathan and Loveless

Andrey Zvyagintsev is the leading name in post-Soviet Russian art cinema. The Return (2003), about two boys whose father comes home after 12 years away, won the Golden Lion at Venice. Leviathan (2014), a crime drama about power and money, won Best Screenplay at Cannes and the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film. Loveless (2017), about separated parents searching for their missing son, won the Cannes Jury Prize and was nominated for an Academy Award; it was made as a co-production of Russia, France, Belgium and Germany.

Russian Film or Soviet Film: What Is the Difference?

A Soviet film was made in the Soviet Union before its collapse in 1991, and a Russian film is one made in the Russian Federation since then. Lists of “Russian movies” usually include both, because Soviet studios such as Mosfilm made most of the classics, largely in the Russian language.

The label is not always exact. Come and See is set in Byelorussia and its screenplay drew on Belarusian survivor testimonies. Hardcore Henry is a Russian-American co-production, and Loveless was co-produced with France, Belgium and Germany.

How to Choose Where to Start

• New to Russian cinema: The Cranes Are Flying or Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears are emotional, story-driven and easy to follow.
• Science fiction fans: Solaris, then Stalker. Tarkovsky developed several ideas from Solaris further in Stalker.
• History and war: Battleship Potemkin, then Come and See; the second is far more disturbing.
• Modern drama: The Return, Leviathan and Loveless, in release order.
• Comedy or action: What Men Talk About or Hardcore Henry.

Streaming availability changes by country, so check a current listings service before planning a watch. For more long-form lists, see the site’s best horror movies of all time and best Japanese horror movies. For another director known for dreamlike cinema, read the profile of David Lynch and his surreal films, and for travel ideas see the most beautiful beaches in Russia.

Written byMohammad Shoaib

Mohammad Shoaib is a freelance writer who offers blogging, ghostwriting and copy-writing services. He works closely with businesses providing digital marketing solution that increases brand awareness and search engine visibility.

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