The Sentimental Policeman

A kindly policeman throws his life into chaos after finding an abandoned baby in Kira Muratova’s self-described “fairy tale,” a winning combination of Chaplinesque comedy and Kafkaesque satire that’s one of her most accessible films. A silent film–inspired beginning launches audiences into this surprisingly warm story (“like a photo from a shop-window in an Odessa photo studio,” Muratova wrote) of the Keaton-faced policeman, his wife, and the baby they want to keep, though all manner of arguing Odessians, barking dogs, overzealous orphanage handlers, and inept bureaucrats stand in the way. Look for an adoption conversation on the Odessa Steps, site of Battleship Potemkin’s famous baby carriage scene.

— Jason Sanders

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