Trial on the Road

Trial on the Road is a 1971 black-and-white Soviet film set in World War II, directed by Aleksey German, starring Rolan Bykov, Anatoly Solonitsyn and Vladimir Zamansky. It is also known as Checkpoint or Check up on the Road. Trial on the Road was censored and taken out of circulation in the Soviet Union for 15 years after its release due to its controversial depiction of Soviet soldiers. The film is based on a story by the director's father, Yuri German. The screenplay was written by Eduard Volodarsky. This film is Alexei German's solo directorial debut which took a philosophical approach to the Soviet usage of "heroes" and "traitors". Screenplay by A. German and Eduard Y. Volodarsky (1941-2012), the film is based on the novel of his father (Operatsiya "S Novym Godom", or Operation "Happy New Year"), Yuri German (1910-1967), a Soviet novelist, screenwriter, and journalist. The original film title was that of the novel. Plot