The Cause You Serve. My Dear Man

Yuri Pavlovich Herman (1910–1967) lived and worked during the Soviet era, and his creative destiny turned out to be surprisingly prosperous. Perhaps this is due to the fact that the writer was genuinely inspired by the ideas of reshaping the world on what seemed to be more just foundations. In 1948, Herman even received a kind of protection certificate – the Stalin Prize for the script of the film "Pirogov" – this is one of many of his works about people dedicated to medicine. The trilogy created between 1958 and 1964 (“The Cause You Serve”, “My Dear Man”, “I Am Responsible for Everything”) tells the story of Vladimir Ustimenko. Deciding to become a doctor, the young man distances himself from everything that could hinder him, for as he believes, “the greatest enemy of science, progress, civilization, and simply the medical profession – is lethargy.” He never allows himself apathy or indifference, and his uncompromising nature often causes suffering to those close to him, to his beloved and loving ones. This is a difficult path, but for Ustimenko, it is the only possible one… The image of the young doctor inspired Joseph Kheifits to create the film “My Dear Man” (1958) with Alexey Batalov in the lead role.