The working trip of the Russian leader in Kazakhstan was completed with a shared viewing of “Panfilov’s 28 Men” film by Nursultan Nazarbayev and Vladimir Putin.
The film has been made based on Alexander Bek’s novel titled “Volokolamsk Highway”, where the story is on behalf of the commander of Panfilov division’s rifle battalion Baurzhan Momyshuly.
The two leaders noted that the division’s feat, which was formed in Almaty and intercepted the enemy’s armor to Moscow, must survive in the memory of future generations.
The Russian Culture Minister V.Medinsky told the Presidents of the two countries about valor and bravery of the division consisting of Kazakh, Russian, Kyrgyz and Ukrainian soldiers.
- It is important to stress that the unique character of the division’s feat lies in its soldiers. They were not career military people but civil recruits, who found the way to stop qualified battle tank forces that before had passed all of Europe, V.Medinsky said.
The film takes place in autumn 1941. According to the description, on November 16, 1941 28 soldiers of the 316th Rifle Division, which was under the command of General Ivan Panfilov, held the line at Dubosekovo crossing and stopped the advance on Moscow of a column of the German tanks. The plot is completely centered on the Soviet soldiers’ act of bravery.
Winter scenes were shot near St. Petersburg and in Ivanovo. The final shots show the park named after the 28 Panfilov’s Guardsmen in Almaty.
