The Ascent (1977)
Kernel Score: 87% · 237 ratings
Genres: Drama, War
Released: 1977-04-02
Runtime: 109 minutes
Where to watch The Ascent
- Stream: The Criterion Channel
- Rent: Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, YouTube
- Buy: Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, YouTube
US availability, updated 2026-10-23.
Overview
During a freezing WWII winter, two Soviet partisans on a mission to gather food contend with the temperature, the occupying Germans, and their own psyches.
The Ascent parents' guide: ages 13+
Parents need to know that The Ascent is a bleak WWII drama depicting torture, execution, and the psychological toll of war on Soviet partisans.
- Violence & scariness: Intense — Depicts torture, a bullet wound, hanging, and mass execution amid brutal wartime conditions.
Fresh Kernels AI-assessed from publicly documented content. A guide for families, not an official rating.
Movies like The Ascent
If you liked The Ascent, these are the movies we'd watch next.
- The Zone of Interest (2023) — 80%
- Paths of Glory (1957) — 91%
- The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (2008) — 87%
- The Six Triple Eight (2024) — 84%
- Diplomacy (2014) — 79%
- Valkyrie (2008) — 77%
- Munich – The Edge of War (2021) — 77%
- Mr. Klein (1976) — 81%
Director
Larisa Shepitko
Cast
- Boris Plotnikov as Sotnikov
- Vladimir Gostyukhin as Rybak
- Anatoliy Solonitsyn as Portnov, collaborationist interrogator
- Lyudmila Polyakova as Avginya Demchikha, the mother
- Viktoriya Goldentul as Basya Meyer, the girl
- Sergei Yakovlev as Petr Sych, village elder
- Mariya Vinogradova as Village elder's wife
- Mykola Sektymenko as Stas Gomenyuk, collaborationist policeman
- Leonid Yukhin as Partisan commander
- Aleksandr Zvenigorskiy as German officer
The Ascent FAQ
Is The Ascent good?
The Ascent has an 87% Kernel Score on Fresh Kernels from 237 audience ratings.
Where can I watch The Ascent?
In the US you can stream The Ascent on The Criterion Channel and rent it from Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play and YouTube.
Is The Ascent OK for kids?
Fresh Kernels suggests ages 13+. Parents need to know that The Ascent is a bleak WWII drama depicting torture, execution, and the psychological toll of war on Soviet partisans.
What movies are like The Ascent?
If you liked The Ascent, try The Zone of Interest, Paths of Glory, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Six Triple Eight.