Katerina is a young, working class girl in 1958. She was trying to get into a school where she could study chemistry and make a better life for herself. She had just failed the exams and had a year to study and take them again. She lived in a single room dorm with two other girls who would become her closest friends throughout life. One of her roommates, named Antonia, was dating a nice, working class man, whom she eventually married. However, the other girl, Lyudmila, is obsessed with playing 'the game' and trying to marry into the higher class. She wanted the money, the big apartment, the nice clothes, and a big shot husband. She was only interested in men who had a title like scientist, philosopher, sports hero. Those were the men who had what she wanted, so she tried her best to make sure they didn't know where she actually lived, and what her lifestyle was. One day, Katerina's aunt and uncle took a long vacation and asked Katerina to move into their apartment. Well, Katerina's uncle was a famous professor and had a very large, very nice apartment that they didn't have to share with anyone. While they are gone, Lyudmila convinces Katerina to pretend that they were sisters and they were the professor's daughters. She wanted to act like they were people who had the money and a house. Skeptical, Katerina was hesitant to agree, but eventually was talked into it. Lyudmila invited many 'big-shot' men over for a party, with the plan that once the two girls paired up and got the men to fall in love with them, they would share the truth. Lyudmila meets a nice Hockey player while Katerina falls for a T.V. camera man named Anton. Unfortunately, while Anton still doesn't know the truth about Katerina, he got her pregnant. Then, he accidentally found out about her job, her not being the professors daughter, and her being pregnant. He refused to help and left her. Meanwhile, Lyudmila got engaged to the hockey player and Antonia got married. Then Katerina had her baby, and while trying to juggle caring for Alexandra and studying for her acceptance test, being tired, stressed, and desperate, she cried herself to sleep.
Flash forward about 17 years. Katerina is a successful, leader in her job. She lives in a nice apartment with her late teens-daughter. She is committed to her job, and it is obvious that it got her a lot. However, she is lonely. She hasn't married. Lyudmila, now divorced from her famous, hockey-playing-turned-alcoholic husband, is still beautiful and still looks for her 'big-shot' man to marry. No longer living in a dormitory, but an apartment a little smaller than Katerina, it is obvious that she too has worked hard to get her house. And Antonia is still happily married and has had 3 children, however they are cramped in a small apartment. One day, after visiting with Antonia, Katerina takes the train home and meets a mysterious, attractive, man. He offers to give her a ride home and then two days later ends up at her house. He cooks dinner for her and Alexandra, and then asks Katrina to marry him. Surprised, she doesn't really know how to respond. He says that they will go for a picnic with his friends on Sunday and that she can give her answer to him on Wednesday. On Sunday she goes to the picnic and falls in love with the mysterious man, Georgiy. They are set to get married, and they both love each other very much. One night, Georgiy helps Alexandra take care of some guys who were bothering her by fighting with them. Katerina raised her voice and demanded that he ask her before doing such a thing again. He agreed, but said that if she ever raised her voice and talked to him like that, he would never come back. Cue Anton, Alexandra's father. Suddenly meeting Katerina, he asks to meet Alexandra. Katrina refuses, saying that he did nothing for her as a child, and she is now an adult. He doesn't listen, and tracks down there home and comes in during dinner one night. Georgiy goes to leave, and Katerina panics and raised her voice and commanded him to stay. After he leaves, she cried, knowing that he would not return. As her friends tried to comfort her, Antonia's husband looked for Georgiy, and after finding him insisted that he return. The movie ends with a happy, content, early-40's Katerina sitting with Georgiy and Alexandra around the dinner table.
Moscow Doesn't Believe in Tears shows the struggles of living in Moscow. If you had the money, you had it nice. If you didn't, it was a struggle. One thing that Communal Living did for Moscow was promote a culture of community. With the tight spaces you had to get to know those living with you. In dormitories it was like a chain, you knew your roommates best, then there were the other girls living in other rooms in your hall, then on your level, then in your building. Everyone knew one another. This was nice because it made friends, but it also made enemies.
The downside to Communal Living in Moscow is that inevitably there will be disputes. In a small apartment, there could be two or three families living together. There is little privacy, as it has been reported that people will eavesdrop and spy. It is unlikely that any personal issue would stay a secret, as there may be only a curtain dividing you from someone else. There also are cases of stealing, anything from food to clothes disappearing. Sometimes there may be two families claiming one thing belongs to them. These disputes are normal, as people don't get to choose who they live with. It is assigned. Unlike in the state, where some friends might go in on a house or apartment together and live as roommates, the government decides who you are with. Since you don't own the space you can't say "No smoking," or "No pets." For all you know the person living with you could be a person with serious criminal history. There are both pros and cons to Communal Living in Moscow, but it does seem like the bad outweigh the good.
I believe that what the film Moscow Doesn't Believe in Tears showed about Communal Living is fairly accurate. It showed the struggles of the classes, the want for something better, the work and time it took to get it, and some of the issues that it caused. I think it showed what all Moscowians dreamed of - a big house, a good job, and privacy. It was an enjoyable film to watch that helped me to grasp the concept of Communal Living in Moscow, both the struggles and peace that it brought.
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