Almost "Oscar"

Russian film critics are going to distribute "elephants"

Anna Starshenbaum. "Children up to 16 ..."
National Kinogetto. The nominees of the first of the three national film awards were determined to summarize the outgoing year: the Kinocritics Prizes and the White Elephant Cinema. The laureates will be called December 22, but now it is clear that the tastes of the “elephant” will again be much more radical than the officiaious “eagle” (which will declare its triumph at the end of January), and - also, according to tradition, a little more revolutionary than that of the Tolerant “Nicky” (she summarizes the results in March) can hardly be considered a sensation that the critics drove “tired Sun-2 "Nikita Mikhalkov. Of all the “weary”, only Evgeny Mironov is nominated for the best male support of the second plan, which is absolutely fair: everyone in this film is remembered by everyone. It is much more interesting that the “region” of Alexei Teacher, which was actually ignored from Russia, were actually ignored for Oscar (also only one modest nomination - Julia Peresild for the best female support for the second -plan) and the “truce” of Svetlana Proskurina, who won at the main festival of domestic cinema, Kinotavra (two nominations, and both went to both nominations, and both went Cord: For the best music for the film and the best male auxiliary role).

There is a feeling that critics, without saying a word, decided to mark all the paintings that received official support or official recognition in Russia. This is partly deserved, although the film Proskurina is sorry. The author of these lines knows about the fact that any conspiracy can be discussed firsthand: voting at the first stage of the prize - nominating candidates to the nominees - purely electronic and, accordingly, individual. There are more than a hundred people voting, and many are not familiar with each other at all.

Mikhail Skryabin. "Fireman"
Not ours, but his own year, there was a hope that our “New Wave” may appear in our cinema. This year did not contribute to optimism. We have introduced a new state financing system aimed at supporting not a good, but thematically important cinema. Most of the directors, who are classified as a potentially possible “new wave”, will release their new paintings only in 2011.

But even in 2010, one could find a young movie (albeit not by the age of the directors, but in spirit), an uncontrolled, not recognizing the official hierarchy, non-general. It was his “White Elephant” that noted. The paintings of the three Alekseev claims the title of the best film of the year: “Kochegar” by Alexei Balabanov, “Ovsyanka” by Alexei Fedorchenko and “How I spent this summer” by Alexei Popogrebsky (he is the only one of the trinity and whose name is associated with the potentially possible “new Russian wave”). In the dispute for the title of the best director and screenwriter, they were joined by the classic Kira Muratov with the “Melody for the barrel organ”, the film shown at the Moscow festival back in 2009, but according to the rental characteristics of this year considered. It was these films that became the absolute favorites of the White Elephant. Ovsyanka has seven nominations, the Kochegar and as I spent this summer - six, and four melody for a barrel, four. Further, with the three nominations, the “Brest Fortress” by Alexander Kotta is the only expensive picture that the “White Elephant” considered a decent consideration.

Julia Aug. "Ovsyanka"
It is strange that from among the favorites “my happiness” Sergei Loznitsa fell - a tough look at Russia, primarily provincial. The film opposed the “tired sun-2” at the last Cannes festival and caused an incredible split in RuNet, and for it, both for and against-are often expressed by those who have not seen the picture. During the selection against the film, it worked that it is formally not Russian (although in it, as in the “Melodies for the Sharmka”, many Russian actors are engaged), and German-Golland-Ukrainian. "Melody" is also formally Ukrainian. But all critics consider ours to Muratov, because she is a classic of Soviet cinema. And the Loznitsa in the minds of many is a foreigner, especially since he lives in Germany. As a result, at a meeting of the Expert Council, an idea arose (it belongs to Kirill Razlogov) to change the regulations of the prize and in the future to consider not only formally Russian, but also all Russian -speaking cinema. Thinking, you understand that the idea is correct. After all, the film awards of the USA and Great Britain, both critical and academic, including the Hollywood Oscar and the British Bafta, evaluate in the general row all English -language cinema. It doesn’t matter if the film has been produced in America, England, Canada, Australia, New Zealand. Foreign cinema includes only films that are not shot in English (in particular, the same Canadian, Quebec, but in French).

Almost “Oscar” if “my happiness” was included in the list of favorites, it would have turned out that the “White Elephant” did not have three, but five, just like “Oscars”, full -fledged candidates for the main prizes: “Kochegar”, “oatmeal”, “as I spent this summer”, “melody for a barbound” and “my happiness”. This means that Kinoid was very good. Moreover, two of our films at once, “As I spent ...” and “Ovsyanka”, were awarded the clouds of international film awards, including prizes for two of the three main film festivals of the world. “As I spent ...” I took prizes in Berlin, and “oatmeal” in Venice. Only Cannes bypassed us. At the same time, we were ignored in Berlin (and absolutely: not only did not award, but also did not select films in the competition) for ten years. And in Venice they did not give serious awards after 2003-the triumph of “Return”.

Grigory Dobrygin, Sergey Pukepalis, "as I spent this summer"
The trouble, however, is the same as before. The best Russian cinema, if it goes out, is only limited in the capitals. The problem is not only that he does not look or does not want to watch the so -called mass viewer. The problem is (this is from the experience of personal communication, which may not be consistent with the estimates of sociologists) that they are experienced by the obvious hostility of the filmmakers of the young post -Soviet generation who watch all interesting things - the classics of Hollywood, Godare, Lynch, Coenes, von Trier, Koreans, but not the domestic cinema, which they have allergies.

This is our guilty of this, and now a new financial policy, oriented to patriotic blockbusters, about which in advance - and not without reason - you think that three quarters of them will turn out to be with decay. Our best cinema is driven into a cultural ghetto. The tragic gap between our best cinema and our best viewer may be destructive.

---

Nominees for the prize
"White Elephant"*

The best film
Fireman
Oatmeal
How I spent this summer

The best scenario
A. Popogrebsky. How I spent this summer
A. Balabanov. Fireman
D. Osokin. Oatmeal
V. Zuev, K. Muratov. Melody for a barrel organ

The best directorial work A. Balabanov. Fireman
A. Popogreb. How I spent this summer
A. Fedorchenko. Oatmeal
K. Muratov. Melody for a barrel organ

The best operator work P. Kostomarov. How I spent this summer
A. Khamidkhodzhaev. Another sky
M. Krichman. Oatmeal

The best work of the artist D. Matveychuk. Brest Fortress
A. Karimullina. Fireman
A. Popov. How I spent this summer
A. Ponkratov. Oatmeal

The best music for the film by V. Didul. Fireman
S. SHNUR. A truce
A. Karasev. Oatmeal

The best main female role Yu. Aug. Oatmeal
O. Demidova. Reverse movement
A. Starshenbaum. Children up to 16 ...

The best main male role S. Poskaskapalis, G. Podkhorygin. How I spent this summer
P. Derevyanko. Brest Fortress
M. Skryabin. Fireman

The best female role of the 2nd plan of M. Zaznarev. Man by the window
R. Litvinova. Melody for a barrel organ
Yu. Peresild. Territory

The best male role of the 2nd plan of E. Mironov. Tired by the sun -2
E. Tsyganov. Brest Fortress
S. SHNUR. A truce

The best film is my happiness. S. Loznitsa
Another sky. D. Mamuli
Reverse movement. A. Stampovsky

The best foreign film of Russian rental is a white ribbon. M. Khanke
Social network. D. Fincher
Serious person. Brothers Cohen

Candidates for the prize named after Miron Chernenko (the legendary first chapter of the guild of film experts and film critics)

Sergey Loznitsa (for contribution to film documentary and fundamental debut in a feature movie)
Kira Muratova (for the fidelity of his path in cinema)
Vadim Abdrashitov (for a civil position in the cinema and life)