The story is set in a prisoner-of-war camp in November 1920, in the Crimea, after the evacuation of the White Army, with several thousand White officers left behind on the peninsula. The officers are unaware of their impending doom, waiting for their fate to be decided by the Red Army officials.[3] One of them – an unnamed poruchik (lieutenant) – is haunted by the memories of a dramatic and brief love affair which occurred in 1907. He tries to understand how the Russian Empire fell apart and who is to blame. His musing comes to an end when all the White officers board an old barge, which the Reds sink in the Black Sea, and all officers perish.
Miloš Biković as baron Nikolay Alexandrovich Gulbe-Levitsky (Koka), a podporuchik (i.e. Second Lieutenant) of the Life Guard Uhlan Regiment of Her Majesty
A leading tune accompanying the lieutenant's romantic feelings – toward his bride and the beautiful stranger – is a popular mezzo-soprano aria from Camille Saint-Saëns's opera Samson and Delilah called "Mon cœur s'ouvre à ta voix" ("My heart opens itself to your voice"), sung by Delilah as she attempts to seduce Samson into revealing the secret of his strength.
The world premiere took place on 3 October 2014 in Belgrade, Serbia. The Russian premiere of the film took place on 4 October 2014 in Simferopol, in Russian-occupied Crimea. The film was released in wide distribution on October 9, 2014. The television premiere took place on November 4, 2014, on the Russia-1 television channel. In 2015, the same channel premiered the 5-episode version of the film.
The film was a box office failure, earning $1.7 million against a budget of $24 million.[4]
^Kondrashov, Alexander (12 November 2014). Не для меня [Not for me]. Literaturnaya Gazeta. Archived from the original on 13 November 2024. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
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