Great Green Valley

1967. USSR. Directed by Merab Kokochashvili. With Dodo Abashidze, Lia Kapanadze, Mzia Maglakelidze. Sosana, a shepherd, lives contentedly in the pastures while his unhappy wife suffers in the village and his son waits for him to return home. He decides to take his family to live with him on the collective farm and to teach his son to take care of the herd, but soon a group of geologists sets up tents and equipment to search for oil fields where Sosana's herd grazes. When the collective demands that he hand over the herd, his private life and the values he holds dear thoroughly unravel. In this neorealist fable about a favorite Georgian theme-man as one with nature-the inherent perils of this anachronistic perspective amid changing times is conveyed through long-distance shots of Sosana as only a small speck within an ever-widening landscape. In Georgian; English subtitles. 90 min.