What Happens at the End of Save and Protect?

Inspired by Flaubert’s Madame Bovary, Sokurov’s Save and Protect recalls the most crucial events of Emma’s decline and fall: affairs with the aristocratic Rodolphe and the student Leon, the humiliation that follows her husband’s botching of the operation on the stable boy’s clubfoot. The universality of the theme of eternal struggle between the soul and the flesh is conveyed through the absence of specific reference to time or place: although the film seems to begin in 1840, its surreal mode effortlessly accommodates an automobile and the strains of “When the Saints Go Marching In” on an off-screen radio. Focusing on passion from a woman’s perspective and downplaying plot, Sokurov explores his subject in exquisite detail, capturing not only the heat of passion but also the quiet moments before and after and the innocent sensuousness of the body.

Aleksandr Sokurov's narrative builds toward a resolution centered on Cécile Zervudacki (Madame Bovary)'s journey. The universality of the theme of eternal struggle between the soul and the flesh is conveyed through the absence of specific reference to time or place: although the film seems to begin in 1840, its surreal mode effortlessly accommodates an automobile and the strains of “When the Saints Go Marching In” on an off-screen radio.

How Does Cécile Zervudacki (Madame Bovary)'s Story End?

• Cécile Zervudacki: Cécile Zervudacki's storyline wraps up in the final act, though some viewers have found the resolution more ambiguous than expected.
• Robert Vaab: Robert Vaab's role in the climax proves pivotal to how the central conflict resolves.
• Aleksandr Cherednik: Aleksandr Cherednik's character undergoes a significant shift in the final act.

What Does the Ending of Save and Protect Mean?

The ending of Save and Protect brings the narrative to a close, though viewer reception has been mixed. The resolution of Cécile Zervudacki's story may not satisfy all audiences.