Celebration (2001): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 2001, Celebration is a drama film directed by Garik Sukachyov, running about 89 minutes.

What it’s about. To mark the 60 years since the beginning of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. The film is set in a small village in western Russia. It is a story about two days from the life of an ordinary family: a father, a mother and their five-year-old daughter. That’s what Garik Sukachyov says about his film: “On June 22, 1941, a family is celebrating the daughter’s birthday. It is a beautiful sunny day, full of joy and merriment. For the girl, it is filled with important events and adventure – her birthday is celebrated by the whole village, not just by her family. And no one yet knows that tomorrow her father will leave for his work in a district center and come back a few hours later in a home guard uniform only to say goodbye to his family. And that at the moment of their leave-taking the Germans already will be entering the village. And that they will be shot by the river, on the same bank where only yesterday the carefree, happy family was sunbathing and having fun…”

Who’s in it. Celebration stars Aleksandr Baluev, Olga Blok-Mirimskaya, Sergey Batalov and Mikhail Efremov, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 1.0/10, Celebration has proved divisive with audiences.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Celebration page.

If you liked it. Fans of Celebration tend to enjoy The Shawshank Redemption, The Godfather, Schindler's List and The Godfather Part II.