I have of course many reasons for liking and approving of the old Russian adaptations and I like them also because they keep the names and places of the literary works they adapt—these are not transposed like in the American adaptations but the audience is considered capable of the effort to accept that interesting stories take place in different places of this world and one can enjoy a story even if the names and places involved sound strange to him. In THE LAST INCH, the kid and his father have the English names given by the literary work's author.The director knows how to satisfactorily tell a story; his flick pleases by its concreteness. No propaganda about poverty and need; the director develops the extremely simple and even meager story following the potentialities—he crafts his scenes, and is primarily a craftsman. Those exasperated by the abstractness and dryness of the conventional unimaginative film storytelling will appreciate that this director sees the things in their natural connections and not following the haste and requirements of an abstract storyline. Do not imagine, dear reader, that I am trying to make this anonymous director as an artist; I have said it, he's a craftsman. He simply worked in a cinema that was naturally more favorable to intelligence and kept a sense of the reality. Nothing is pushed or ostentatiously underlined—'here's a coming—of—age story as well as a critique of the social relations in capitalist systems' …. It's simply an average drama, to be liked as such.THE LAST INCH is a perhaps modest flick about some basic values as met in the lives of a small family—a father and his kid: courage, endurance, manliness, discretion, strength; the style employed has its merits as well—the naturalness and the directness. As presented by the director, the story is so manifestly true to the everyday conditions of the lives that it can't get preachy—yet the intent certainly aimed at the educative. Not at all banal, but extraordinary, this family's adventure maintains a tone of decency and simplicity and humanness. It suggests to a certain degree a well made J London movie.

SYNOPSIS: The story is set in Egypt. A 43-year-old American pilot, Ben, is going through a rough patch. When there seems to be no more work for him as a pilot, he gets an offer to earn a large sum of money by filming sharks underwater for a TV company. Ben decides to take the risk and flies a small airplane to a remote bay on the Red Sea coast, taking with him his 10-year-old son, Davy. While underwater, Ben is attacked by a shark, leaving him bleeding and paralyzed. The only hope for the two of them to survive is if the boy manages to fly the plane and get his father to a hospital.In adapting James Aldridge's short story "The Last Inch," screenwriter Leonid Belokurov left the basic plot details intact, but significantly transformed and expanded the emotional and psychological content, much to the film's advantage. In particular, he added a well-developed, increasingly caring relationship between father and son, as well as a theme of gaining wisdom and enlightenment from a tumultuous, life-altering experience. The film was an instant hit with viewers of all ages. Aside from the moving and inspiring tale of courage against all odds, it delivers beautiful cinematography (so effective in the exotic Egyptian settings) and a memorable score (complete with two excellent theme songs: a bitter, agonizing one for Ben and a cheerful, playful one for Davy). Although the film is not entirely free of some Soviet clichés and conventions of the time, it has not lost its relevance and appeal.Nikolai Kryukov is perfectly cast as an emotionally distant, strict yet caring father who is overwhelmed by life's pressures and has little time for his son. His brilliant performance is not even marred by an excessively gentle (bordering on saccharine) voice-over narration which is meant to highlight his character's inner self in contrast to his outward toughness (in line with the Soviet tendency to portray man's inner world in idealistic terms).Slava Muratov is charming and bright as Davy, a loving and forgiving son who knows better than to sulk for too long after his father's scoldings. Like all kids, Davy loves to run around and play make-believe. But when things take a tragic turn and he suddenly finds himself responsible for his father's life, he musters up his courage and begins acting like a real hero. The scenes of his transformation into a hero are staged in a deliberately theatrical manner that adds an element of epic legend to the story. Later on in the film, Slava Muratov delivers an even more astounding transformation when he appears in Ben's dream sequence as a beaming, perfectly angelic Davy who flies away from his father on a toy balloon. A most enjoyable and memorable performance from a young boy with no acting experience! "It's the last inch that counts," says Ben to Davy as they watch an airplane landing in the opening sequence. That plane is flown by a novice pilot who loses control and crashes into the ground. Yet this colorful Soviet film of 1958 is still flying high. It easily passes the "last inch" test, as well as the test of time. It's heartwarming, uplifting, and inspiring, and it has a truly beautiful ending!

Most unusual story line: veteran pilot decides to make some extra-money by filming underwater shark feeding at the remote Red Sea location. He takes with him young son ( about 12-14) for a plane ride, while goes underwater. The trouble is: while filming, he has been viciously attacked by a pack of angry sharks which render him incapacitated to fly home. Now he faces an option: either both of them die in the desert or his little boy must fly them back. His son has some rudimentary knowledge of flying, but does not have any real experience. The father lost a lot of blood and he is in constant pain. He is drifting in and out of consciousness, hence additional danger may be that his son will be all along in the air. Keeps the viewer on the edge of the seat. The musical score is well chosen as well. Shame that this movie was shown only for the Russian Audience!