User Reviews

It has taken me ages to track down this title, particularly because it is Russian and I only remember it by the name it was transmitted in Britain: THE BOY FROM 5B. It is the story of a boy named Boris, who becomes pioneer leader of the infant class in his school, a task hampered by various other problems, such as trying to make the football team, trying to buy a birthday gift for his mother, and his romantic pursuit of the pretty new girl Toshka. The film itself was shown in the UK as a three-part mini series, as I remember, and I believe was in black-and-white, with English narration over the original Russian language. (I have never seen a colour version anyway). The innocence of the story is very touching, Boris or Borya as he was called, proved a very caring boy, despite wanting to keep up the right "image" in front of his peers, and I especially loved the musical score, which was quite unique and very memorable, and had a distinctive sort of late 60s sound. I believe another title for this film is THAT FUNNY BOY OF CLASS 5B, as well as CRANK OF 5TH B, as mentioned here on IMDb. I hope by including the alternative titles it will help others find this rare gem from the early 70s, a true childhood favourite which I will always remember.