Tag Archives: russian

Oksana Borbat and Valentina Vyntu in “Hutorskie strasti” [2008 Ukraine]

This is one of my ‘guilty-pleasure’ posts as I wasn’t in a mood for anything particularly deep this week. Ukrainian director Aleksandr Parkhomenko’s “Hutorskie strasti” translates as Hamlet of Passion, a comedy that resembles one of the gleefully naughty stocking-fillers that … Continue reading

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Everything can be justified in war – “Voyna” [2002 Russia]

Aleksey Balabanov looks at the Chechen conflict through the eyes of a liberal-but-nationalistic Russian in his war-time drama, “Voyna” [Eng. Title: War]. But I somehow also get the feeling that he’s mocking us Brits in the process. The film pulls … Continue reading

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Olga Ponizova in “Grekh. Istoriya Strasti” [1993 Russia]

Viktor Sergeyev’s melodrama “Grekh. Istoriya Strasti” [Eng. Title: Sin. A Story of Passion] is about a love affair between a monk and a young carefree woman. Storyline: The film is told in flashback, after a German TV crew descend upon … Continue reading

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A pilgrimage of the damned – “Ya tozhe khochu” [2012 Russia]

Two famous films came to mind watching Aleksey Balabanov’s adventure drama, “Ya tozhe khochu” [Eng. Title: Me Too] – Andrei Tarkovsky’s Stalker, and Alejandro Jadorowsky’s Fando & Lis, even if the style and visuals are closer to the former. Storyline: … Continue reading

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Survival in the face of savagery – “Zateryannyy v Sibiri” [1991 USSR, UK]

I’m stating the obvious – a film like “Zateryannyy v Sibiri” [Eng. Title: Lost in Siberia] would have been unthinkable in the USSR, were it not for Glasnost. It was nevertheless the first authoritative portrayal of the workings of the … Continue reading

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