However, when a grief-stricken mother of another boy commits suicide after returning to reclaim her son and discovering he is no longer there, Vanya fears the same fate looms for him.

With the aid of some of the older boys, he retrieves his file from the office safe and learns the address of the children's home where he previously lived.

Upon arriving in the town where the children's home is located, Vanya is attacked by the homeless boys, but escapes and finds a bus that will take him to his destination.

Like its extraordinary child lead, this Russian drama about an orphan's search for his birth mother is small in size and monumental in pathos".

"[4] Ruthe Stein of the San Francisco Chronicle called the film "a deeply moving experience, alternately funny and sad" and added, "Based on a real incident, it has the ring of truth.

"[5] Leslie Felperin of Variety observed, "Briskly helmed by feature debutant Andrei Kravchuk, [the picture] depicts the hard-knock life in a remote Russian children's home with stark realism, evolving smoothly into a taut adventure tale as [the protagonist] hits the road in search of his mom.

Possibly a bit too hard-hitting for more protected Western kids, [the picture] might appeal to subtitle-friendly tweens and teens in upmarket territories.