Tengiz Abuladze; Filmmaker Hailed for Anti-Stalin Work

Tengiz Abuladze, 70, Russian filmmaker whose “Repentance” openly put down Stalinism. Abuladze, who won the former Soviet Union’s Lenin Prize for his work in 1983, earned international notice with his 1977 film “Tree of Desire.” But he became famous in 1987 with “Repentance,” which was seen as a symbol of the new openness and freedom of thought promoted by former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev. The film, a metaphor of the evil of tyranny, features a Soviet Georgian dictator who destroys a society and leaves a legacy of perpetuated lies. The surreal film was Russia’s contender for an Academy Award as best foreign film. Abuladze served briefly in the Soviet parliament from 1990 to 1991. On Sunday in Tbilisi, Russia.