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Though made in Latvia, Rita was "officially" a Russian film, and was entered as such in the 1958 Karlovy Vary Film Festival. The title character is a little Latvian girl who almost casually became a heroine during WWII. Stumbling across four escaped POWs, Rita not only helps the escapees find food but also protects them from the probing eyes of their German captors. Rita also displays compassion for a German soldier, aiding in his escape from a dirty-rat Nazi collaborator. Refreshingly nonsentimental, Rita is a film that deserves to be better known.