Elegy of Life is a beautiful, deeply felt tribute to one of the most remarkable musical partnerships of the past century: cellist-conductor Mstislav Rostropovich and his wife, opera diva Galina Vishnevskaya. Their fiftieth wedding anniversary party reveals the people, artworks, social movements, and world events that shaped them as people and artists, while Sokurov documents their working methods and elicits often surprising opinions in a series of intimate interviews. Elegy of Life also recounts their run-ins with the Soviet government, especially after they gave shelter to novelist Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn; stripped of their citizenship, they were forced into exile until encouraged to return by Gorbachev. This is a loving tribute to two great Russian artists, and a fascinating addendum to Sokurov's Alexandra, starring Vishnevskaya.