We're all going on a summer holiday...to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic! It's pretty grim and industrial, but at least it's sunny! This month's film is Little Vera, directed by Vasily Pichul and written by Mariya Khmelik. To discuss the film, Ally is joined by chef, KinoVino supper club founder, and author of Salt and Time: Recipes from a Russian Kitchen, Alissa Timoshkina. Check out Alissa's amazing culinary creations at: www.instagram.com/borsch_and_no_tears/ Expect SPOILERS from about 55 minutes in until the end. CONTENT WARNING: During the film it is revealed that one of the characters was from a present day standpoint in some jurisdictions the victim of statutory rape (Soviet law defined the age of consent as when an individual had reached puberty). There is also a fairly explicit sex scene. Little Vera stars Natalya Negoda, Andrey Sokolov, Yuri Nazarov, Lyudmila Zaytseva, and Alexandra Tabakova. If you'd like to get in touch and tell us what you thought of the film and/or the podcast episode, it would be great to hear from you! Here are some ways you can do that: Twitter: @RussophilesU Email: [email protected] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/russophilesunite Instagram: www.instagram.com/russophiles_unite/ Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Ally_ Support the show/fund Ally's caffeine habit at: https://ko-fi.com/russophilesunite