The Scaffold

Exiled from the theological seminary as a heretic—an adherent of new ideas—Avdiy Kallistaratov begins working as a freelance correspondent for a regional Komsomol newspaper. One day, an idea comes to him to go with cannabis preparers to Kazakhstan and prepare an exposing report. His attempt to convince the preparers of the unlawfulness of their lives ends badly: they throw the young man out of the train. The restless Avdiy hires on with hunters who shoot saiga antelopes and encounters their barbaric cruelty. This time, trying to convince people to change leads to a tragic ending: Avdiy dies—crucified to a tree by the hunters…