They say that Shukshin's favorite film. Maybe.
Unlike most of his other works, and so worked mainly on the atmosphere, in this plot and completely nominal. This is a road movie about a rural couple’s vacation.
Classically for a road movie, the film consists of a series of rather isolated scenes: the beginning with wires, fellow travelers on a train, Moscow, the professor’s apartment, a boarding house.
The initial scenes are perfectly staged – no one could depict village life better than Shukshin, and the train is rich in colorful characters (especially the “designer” and the professor distinguished themselves), then on arrival in Moscow the plot sags sharply.
The communication of the Rastorguev couple with the professorial environment is somehow sluggish and confused. The culmination in the form of a story about Herring, instead of issuing “compromising information” could have a much greater effect, if at least they showed the reaction of listeners of this whole show.
The boarding house, it seems, is completely removed on the residual principle. Finished the scenes and wrapped up. There is a feeling of a certain rift of the narrative. It is clear that at the very beginning, the Black Sea was voiced as the ultimate goal of the route, but it would be possible to somehow emphasize what is happening, because there is no need to talk about creating an atmosphere and beautiful description with such a clumsy timekeeping.
In general, the film turned out good, but far, in my opinion, not the best in Shukshin. The ending's a big blow.