"In 1923, just after the civil war's end, a young ex-Red Army man, Duyshen, arrives in a small Kirghiz village. He has been appointed to set up and teach in the local school. Although he is not very well educated, he is filled with an optimistic belief in the new order of things, believing that only knowledge will lead the rough, superstitious villagers on the road to a better life. Duyshen's encounters with his future neighbors are almost unbearably difficult and when the news of Lenin's death reaches the village, he is overwhelmed by the breakdown of order. The brilliance of this first feature brought world fame to Konchalovsky (he was 28 years old, and this was his diploma work at the Moscow Film School). The realism of his approach makes The First Teacher a very contemporary look at the past-it is historical in subject matter, but philosophical in mood, catching youthful impulses at the crossroad of decision." (AJ)