Russian Movies

[guzelle.livejournal.com]

Thanks for all the suggestions about Russian singers and songs, many of them were great!

Another question is about Russian movies. What Russian movies would you recommend for the Russian language student who loves good films?

He liked Ironia sud'by and Obyknovennoe chudo. He was able to understand about third of the dialogs in Russian and the rest with the help of English and Russian subtitles.

Thanks!

Comments

[arashi-opera.livejournal.com]

Some nice Soviet comedies, particularly by Eldar Ryazanov and Leonid Gaidai: "Иван Васильевич меняет профессию" (http://imdb.com/title/tt0070233/), "Бриллиантовая рука" (http://imdb.com/title/tt0062759/), "На Дерибасовской хорошая погода" (http://imdb.com/title/tt0104962/) by Leonid Gaidai, "О бедном гусаре замолвите слово" (http://imdb.com/title/tt0081256/), "Служебный роман" (http://imdb.com/title/tt0076727/), esp. if you liked "Ирония судьбы", "Жестокий романс" (http://imdb.com/title/tt0090368/).

[smartkitty-86.livejournal.com]

+++++1 Служебный роман :)

[wash-it-out.livejournal.com]

Now this I can contribute to! :) I took an awesome class in college called Russian film.

Here are some of the ones we watched, all of which I enjoyed:

The Adventures of Mr. West in the Land of the Bolsheviks
Battleship Potemkin
The Cuckoo
The Cranes are Flying
Dark Eyes
East-West (it's actually a French movie, but it's about Stalinist Russia and it's amazing)
Moscow Doesn't Believe in Tears
Eisenstein's Ivan the Terrible
Andrei Rublev
Burnt by the Sun
Solaris
Oblomov
The Barber of Siberia

Even the ones that weren't really, really great were still informative and entertaining. :)

[alek-morse.livejournal.com]

///The Adventures of Mr. West in the Land of the Bolsheviks
Battleship Potemkin///

Hmm... These films are great, no doubt. But they are silent ones, with subtitles in old fashion. Is it enough for the learning of Russian language?

///The Barber of Siberia///

As for me, I'm not sure that film is successful choice. I'd like to recommend the others films by director Nikita Mikhalkov. For example, his "Slave of Love" (Раба любви). There are the plot of the Civil War time, the love-story with movie star Olga Voznesenskaya (her prototype is Vera Holodnaya), the intrigue with contra-intelligence, old Odessa and many other interesting things. Very piercing film!

However, if I was asked what the Russian movie do you recommend first for a foreign viewer, I'd recommend "Formula of Love" (Формула любви) by Mark Zakharov. It's very witty film, a comedy and melodrama at the same time. In ending of 18 century, the famous Count Cagliostro has arrived in Russia. Of course, he arranges the seances of Magic... Some day one young landowner asks him to transform the stone statue of female into real alive girl.

Here are you may to read of the film and see the screencaps:
http://russart.com/?mid=108

Excellent and witty replies! The screenplay is written by famous playwright Grigory Gorin. The replies came off in people's quotes.
If you'd to find an analogy of that film among Western movie, I'd say that "Formula of Love" like a bit Terry Gilliam's films + Stopard's plays.

[wash-it-out.livejournal.com]

You know, you're right, the fact that they're subtitled makes them probably not the best options. I didn't think of that... maybe the list I made should be shortened to include ones that specifically have plenty of engaging dialogue to help with learning the language. Thanks for pointing that out.

I haven't seen Slave of Love or Formula of Love, they both sound wonderful! I don't think I know Zakharov, but it sounds really magical. :) I'll have to look into both of those.

I enjoyed the Barber of Siberia, but that might have been because my professor was funny and I associate it with a lot of little inside jokes he would make while we were watching it.

[alek-morse.livejournal.com]

However, many Russian viewers consider that 'Barber of Siberia' is "развеситая клюква" - this idioma means that film has many false and lubok touches on Russian eye. Though, this movie had a huge success in Russia too. May be, thank to huge budget, I don't know.

[wash-it-out.livejournal.com]

That's interesting to know, I'd like to watch it again with that in mind. I'm trying to remember plot specifics and I guess I can see why! It's interesting to see what Russian films foreign viewers like versus what films actually Russians find authentic and enjoyable.

[alek-morse.livejournal.com]

Honestly, the same thing with 'East-West' I don't say about that Kiev was filmed in Sophia. :(
Of course, Sergey Bodrov is very good.

[alek-morse.livejournal.com]

In another hand, you have hit in a target when you have called 'Burnt by the Sun' and 'Oblomov'. In my view, these films are very Russian ones :)

[arashi-opera.livejournal.com]

I say "craneberry tree" as a variant of развесистая клюква. %)

[http://users.livejournal.com/arter_sr13_/]

Покровские ворота (http://imdb.com/title/tt0083465/)
Mark Zakharov (http://imdb.com/name/nm0952272/)'s movies.

[tlkh.livejournal.com]

Сказка странствий ( http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0141830/ ) - quite dark medieval fairy tale & comedy, 1982
Кин-дза-дза ( http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091341/ ) - anti-utopia, sci-fi, comedy, a cult movie in Russia, 1986
Человек с бульвара Капуцинов (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092745/) - wild west comedy, 1987

[alek-morse.livejournal.com]

Excellent choice!

I'd recomment these film too, no doubt. Before I thought what of two films to pick - 'Kin-Dza-Dza' (Кин-дза-дза) or 'Formula of Love'.
'Formula of Love' has won becouse of the action has been in Russia.

[malim-praedari.livejournal.com]

+ 1 «Сказка странствий». Also the other two, but this one in particular, as it has become unjustifiably obscure. It can be hard to find, though (I used to have a DVD rip of it somewhere).

[sherlock2040.livejournal.com]

I recently saw 'Mermaid' at the cinema but I don't know if it's out on DVD yet but it was an awesome film. The only other Russian films I've seen are 'Night Watch' and '9th Company', both of which are very good.

[alek-morse.livejournal.com]

///The only other Russian films I've seen are 'Night Watch' and '9th Company', both of which are very good.///

I like more 'Day Watch' than 'Night Watch'. It has more well thought-out conseption, I think. I'd to cut down 'Night Watch' to 10-15 minutes prologue for 'Day Watch'.

As for '9th Company'...
There is more interesting Russian/Soviet film of Afghan war: 'Афганский излом' with Italian actor Mikele Plachido. I highly recommend this.

[xtension-sparkx.livejournal.com]

I was going to recommend Night Watch and Day Watch too. Good films :]

[cassandraclue.livejournal.com]

Вий--the first soviet horror film, based on a gogol story--might be interesting for him to watch.

i also like брат and груз 200, but according to wikipedia this director's films are often criticized by american film critics as being xenophobic/racist. the things you learn from wikipedia.

i was given a list by one of my friends of good russian movies for people who are really serious about film... i'll try to find it for you.

[cassandraclue.livejournal.com]

ok here is the list some have already been posted but yeah

directors:
гайдай, данелиа, норштейн (animation), тарковский, евгенний юфит--avant-garde "neorealism"

alternative/art films:
собачье сердце
я куба
сталкер
андрей рублев (i personally hate this movie, it's terribly long and they spend a long time making a freaking bell but a lot of people seem to enjoy it :))
иваново детство
солярис
июльский дождь
летят журавли
интердевочка
калина красная
белое солнце пустыня

some popular soviet films:
будьте моим мужем
три плюс два
человек амфибия
я шагаю по москве

soviet satire:
осенний марафон
афоня

comedies:
операция "ы"
кавказская пленница
бриллантовая рука
джентельмены удачи

animation:
остров сокровищ
ежик в тумане

documentaries:
анна 6-18

avant-garde/absurd
трактор
2 капитана 2

from other soviet republics:
мольба--georgian
покаяние--georgian
цвет граната

I haven't seen any of these films myself... most russian movies i have seen i just saw on tv and don't remember the names. but i figured this list might be helpful :)

[alek-morse.livejournal.com]

///человек амфибия///

I read many rapturous responces by American viewers of 'Amphibian Man' (Человек-Аимфибия). Here is: http://imdb.com/title/tt0055844/ (info is in http://russart.com/?mid=1476 )

I'd to add to the list the name of director Mark Zakharov.

That's interesing, I don't see in the list the famous Soviet mini-series like '17 instances of Sping' (17 мгновений весны) about Soviet spy in the Nazi headquarters... I think this film is very important part of Russians' self-consciousness.

[cassandraclue.livejournal.com]

this list was given to me by an american who works in russia... so i don't think it will reflect so much russian self-consciousness as much as films which are interesting to americans who are students of russian with an interest in russian film :)

[alek-morse.livejournal.com]

I think you are wrong a bit.
The matter is that '17 instances of Spring' contains a lot of replies that became the proverbial quotes, without ones I hardly imagine everyday relations not only at home, but in office. For example, here is one of most famous:

А вас, Штирлиц, я попрошу остаться! ;)

And if a Russian mate/collegue or chief will say it to your student?

[cassandraclue.livejournal.com]

well, i didn't write the list myself, my friend did--but i believe his intention was to make a list for his student who was a film student who wanted to learn more about russian cinema, less for the purpose of language-learning than film history-learning. but it seems as if this movie to which you are referring is one that i myself will check out to learn more proverbs :) but also when i lived in russia usually my friends would in conversation with me preface a proverb with "there is a russian proverb..." and explain it to me, as they recognize me not as native speaker with an inborn understanding of russian language and culture but as a foreigner :) but it sounds like watching this movie will be helpful to me:)

did you think that perhaps i meant the film you speak of does not reflect russian self-consciousness? that i do not doubt--i merely meant that the list itself was written from the point of view of a foreigner. that is my fault for not writing my response clearly enough.

also, if someone said "а вас, Штрилиц, я попрошу остаться!" i would understand the meaning even without understanding the cultural context. a learner of language is never "finished," i suppose, as once you have your language fluency there is still cultural fluency.

[smartkitty-86.livejournal.com]

+1 кавказская пленница

[smartkitty-86.livejournal.com]

And +1 on White Sun too

[voltaireontoast.livejournal.com]

I recommend both the ones we watched in our Russian class, The Return (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0376968/), which is a really good modern Russian drama film and Russian Ark (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0318034/), which is...interesting. I enjoyed it because I love Russian history and it was an original way of making a film (all done in one shot, first person perspective) and it's set in the Hermitage in St Petersburg and the whole film's in a very strange timewarp. I did enjoy it, though, if it is bizarre.

[smartkitty-86.livejournal.com]

Возвращение is an art film, so the dialogue is minimal and relatively simple. Also, if your friend doesn't like art film, beware. It is the epitome of art. Beautiful, though.

[johngorentz.livejournal.com]

It's the first Russian film I watched, and I think it's the best one yet -- even better than any of Tarkovsky's or Ryazanov's.

I watch these films with subtitles. I'm pretty much a beginner at learning Russian, and have been so for a long time. But movies have provoked me to do a little more than just dabble in it.

Sometimes I can correctly anticipate what the actors are going to say from reading the subtitle; sometimes I can tell they're talking about things that are absolutely not in the subtitles.

One good thing from all of this is that my wife and I have found something we enjoy watching together, even though she's not trying to learn the language. It makes her a little more tolerant of the time I spend on such a frivolous activity.

One thing I'm curious about -- in the movie Depuis qu’Otar est parti, is the Russian spoken with a French accent? I have no ability to detect something like that. (That's one we watched recently. I gave it a 5 on Netflix.)

[spiritrc.livejournal.com]

What film is that: "Depuis qu’Otar est parti" ? Is that a Russian or French film?

[johngorentz.livejournal.com]

It's a French film, but the setting is mostly Georgia, and the languages spoken are French, Russian, and Georgian. The characters switch among the three languages quite easily, it seems. Except the elderly woman who plays the grandmother refused to learn any Georgian for the movie, so she speaks only Russian and French.

Here is Netflix: Since Otar Left (http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Since_Otar_Left/60037330?trkid=189530&strkid=1947431955_0_0)

I blogged about it here (http://www.reticulator.com/2007/09/05/depuis-quotar-est-parti/) and here (http://www.reticulator.com/2007/09/06/depuis-qu%e2%80%99otar-est-parti%e2%80%a62/) when watching it.

[gulidar.livejournal.com]

Kin-Dza-Dza is indeed a film to watch.

[ars-longa.livejournal.com]

The series about Sherlock Holmes with Livanov as Holmes is totally great. You can find the titles here - http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0515106/

[alek-morse.livejournal.com]

///You can find the titles here - http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0515106/ ///

...and you can find more detail info of it in my Live Journal ;)))

By the way, it's a interesting variant to learn Russian language with the Russian film adaptation of English stories. True.

For example:

This film screened the Agatha Christie's novel -
http://imdb.com/title/tt0092879/
http://russart.com/?mid=32

[la-sincerite.livejournal.com]

"Вам и не снилось"
http://www.ozon.ru/context/detail/id/71405/

[zverolov.livejournal.com]

+1
very nice movie

[dp-maxime.livejournal.com]

Мимино (Mimino), http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076391/
Джентельмены удачи (Gentlemeny udachy), http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068519/ recommended as it's full of new russian proverbs (this film has introduced most of them).
Тот самый Мюнхаузен (Tot samyy Myunkhgauzen), http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080037/

[from-somewhere.livejournal.com]

"Забытая мелодия для флейты"
"Стакан воды"
"Берегись автомобиля"

[smartkitty-86.livejournal.com]

Олигарх, if he likes mob movies. Even better, Брат & Брат 2.

[dekarmi.livejournal.com]

"Ostrov" ("Island") by Lungin is the best of recent Russian movies. Very strong.

[zverolov.livejournal.com]

"Формула радуги" - 1960's sci-fi robot comedy. Was banned in USSR because of satire about soviet bureaucracy.
"Приключения Электроника" - cult teenage movie, also about robot :)))

About robot, too:

[bakabaka.livejournal.com]

"Его звали Роберт"
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062508/

[ex-forest-l.livejournal.com]

There are the seven great Tarkovsky movies, but they are quite dark. They are the numbers 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 here: http://imdb.com/name/nm0001789/#director (the others are TV or college works). I've seen 'Stalker' and never understood it, while 'Andrey Rublyov' and 'Ivan's childhood' are just superb. And I reckon they're good for learning Russian, because Tarkovsky's style is that the words are secondary to the picture, so there are fairly few of them, but they're well-chosen.

Of those that have already been mentioned - +1:
'Kin-Dza-Dza' ("Кин-Дза-Дза");
all the Gayday and Ryazanov films;
Dog's heart ("Собачье сердце");
The Autumn Maraphon ("Осенний марафон");
The White Sun of the Desert ("Белое солнце пустыни");
A Glass of Water ("Стакан воды").

[spiritrc.livejournal.com]

My eye stumbled at it and I thought that writing Гайдай as Gayday is not the best way. It looks like a day of gays. :) May be, Guydui or something?

Among Ryazanov's films I would definitely recommend watching "The Garage" (Гараж) and "Railway station for two" (Вокзал для двоих).

As to Kin-Dza-Dza, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, especially a foreigner. I never undestood that film and I can't undestand why it was to make it. That's just my opinion of course.

[diello.livejournal.com]

I recently saw Дом дураков - House of Fools. I loved it (except I had that damn Bryan Adams song in my head for weeks afterwards.

[takaroyama.livejournal.com]

http://kermit73.livejournal.com/514713.html
Here's the list of 100 best Russian films.

[spiritrc.livejournal.com]

From the latest movies I would recommend watching "Двенадцать" by Никита Михалков and "Артистка" by Станислав Говорухин. I would also recommend "Остров" by Павел Лунгин. In my opinion those are the best (although very different in genre) films for the last like 10 years.