Mournful Unconcern is the third produced film by Alexander Sokurov, completed in 1983, but the fourth released one, as it was banned by Soviet authorities until perestroika in 1987. The film, set during World War I, is inspired by Bernard Shaw's play Heartbreak House. Professional actors were used alongside amateur actors, like in most early Sokurov films, and many of the trademarks of his cinematographic style were already apparent.