“This is not humor! I was familiar with Gaiday! "

Member of the Public Council under the Ministry of Culture Pavel Pavel Zatogaylo explained to "Medusa", which insults him "Death of Stalin"

On January 23, the Ministry of Culture of Russia withdrew the rental certificate from the satirical Anglo-French film “Death of Stalin” directed by Armando Iannucci. Before this, the “death of Stalin” was criticized by State Duma deputies, and Russian cinema figures called the content of the film offensive. Member of the Public Council under the Ministry of Culture Pavel Zatogaylo said that the premiere of the film should be postponed for six months so as not to “prevent” the 75th anniversary of the end of the Stalingrad battle planned for February 2. The journalist of "Medusa" Evgeny Berg found out from Enemy, which insulted him "The death of Stalin."

- You watched “Death of Stalin” during a special show for the Public Council under the Ministry of Culture. What is the movie about?

-We are talking about the last days of Stalin’s life, the main characters are a company in a rather American style of the characters made, in the style of the Adams family. Such aesthetics of Hollywood horror films. There [members of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU Nikita] Khrushchev, [George] Malenkov, [Lavrenty] Beria, Stalin himself. A number of scenes were shot in the style of the comic book. The film begins with the death of Stalin, and ends when Beria is killed, and Khrushchev comes to power.

The problem, from my point of view, is how it was shot. The first - all these characters are related to a serious moment in the history of Russia related to the Great Patriotic War. The second group of comic people - our marshals [George] Zhukov, [Konstantin] Rokossovsky - with full breasts of orders. They are removed like moronic clowns. Zhukov - vulgar, brawls, such a holding, not a big mind [man], but at the same time on the chest - the Order of Glory, Victory, the Red Star. The satirical presentation looks blasphemous, but it transfers us to the real events of the Great Patriotic War, real characters. This is the main reason why the film caused a negative reaction.

- What exactly looks blasphemous?

- How these characters look what they do, what they say. Yes, even from the point of view of the law, the rental certificate should not have been issued, because in the film the points of its issuance were violated. We are talking about unmotivated scenes of violence, they colorfully describe the executions and torture of people, Beria himself tortures people there. I will honestly tell you to look at it quite creepy. Hollywood made, deliciously. But our unmotivated cruelty should not be shown by law.

- Is this just not the task of art - to show, among other things, historical personalities who liked unmotivated violence?

- It has nothing to do with art! In general, this is some kind of kitsch, outside the normal human ethics. The scenes are filmed in order to amuse the audience with excess blood. In this film, the second point is important - discrediting state symbols. All these marshals overturned fascism, they were far from those images that are given there [in the film]. This is not humor-yumor, I was familiar with Leonid Iovich Gaidai in my life, and we are friends with his family ...

- Excuse me, I will note that the film is not humorous, but satirical.

- Who cares?

- Between humor and satire?

- No. Humor and satire can be with a certain artistic intention or to be frank vulgarity. The humor of Zhvanetsky is different from the Camedy Club humor. Gaidai humor differs from many subsequent comedies with all sorts of obscenities that amuse the audience. In this case, we are not talking about any comic characters, but about the leaders of a large state who were related to victory in the Great Patriotic War.

It is very strange to me that [people] from Canada ( director Armando Iannucci in fact, the Scot - approx. Medusa ) took up this satire. I am interested, and if we remove the film about Theodore Roosevelt or come up with a story that Churchill looks like a hippo and can have satirical relationships with hippos, and then we will skip it in the UK ... do you generally believe that this is possible?

- Armando Iannucci took off, for example, “in a loop” - a very tough satire on the British government.

- Well, I, unfortunately, did not see him.

- Then just know that the answer to your question is yes, it is possible.

- I have not seen. I can only say about what I saw yesterday. This is the vulgarity and insult of our people and our history.

- Do you associate the image of Marshal Zhukov with the whole Russian people?

- I associate it with the person who knocked fascism and saved our country from complete destruction.

“And therefore you can't laugh at him?”

- You can’t insult, you can laugh. We are talking about humiliation when humor crosses the line and insults.

- Give an example from the film where its author humiliates Zhukov.

- He is from beginning to end [doing it]. As in the “red heat” -such a dubol that, in between drinks, gives someone a fist in physiognomy, and nothing more. Or Beria, when he turns a little girl into the camera, gives her flowers, performs violent actions - listen, this is all beyond the facet of art. We are talking either about a commercial provocation of low quality, or about a political technological operation in order to show this film on the eve of the 75th anniversary of the Stalingrad battle and insult veterans for whom Zhukov and Stalin were people who ensured this victory.

- It is interesting that you are talking to all veterans. If we study this issue, we will find out that they treated Stalin and Zhukov differently.

- You say "if." We can only build guesses here. Certainly, our great marshals were related [to victory]. I am sure that 99% of our veterans treat them like that. Therefore, this film offends them.

- You yourself operate with speculations.

- I have an advantage - I saw the film. What I saw, from my point of view, will insult veterans. I am also a non -accident in this area, since 1991, I have been related to culture, to cinema.

Who is Pavel Eater? A graduate of the Serpukhov Higher Military Command School of the Strategic Missile Forces, member of the United Russia party. In 2003-2006-State Duma deputy. In 2006-2008-Deputy Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation. In 2017, as the head of the Public Council at the Ministry of Council, he proposed to transfer the film “Matilda” to the premiere of the film for two years-so as not to release him at the same time with the centenary of the execution of the royal family. In the fall of 2017, he resigned from the post of head of the Council, as he was accused of an “uncertain position” against Matilda.

-You are constantly talking about the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the end of the Battle of Stalingrad. However, the film is not about the war at all, and this is generally this anniversary?

- Exactly despite the fact that the film is completely filled with characters who were directly related to victory in the Great Patriotic War. No one attracts anyone by the ears. There is simply a direct desecration of history and those people who were related to victory in the Great Patriotic War.

-That is, these are some special people who need to joke very carefully about?

- I think yes. Already at least Zhukov and Rokossovsky are definitely special people.

“How can you joke about them?”

- You can joke about them exactly as about us - so that we do not take offense at this joke.

- The satire will always hurt the person to whom it is directed.

- Not true. Ilf and Petrov, the comedy of Gaidai, Mikhail Zhvanetsky - this is a high level of humor, which never insulted anyone. And you can joke so much that a person is offended for life.

The film was shot by a man who does not understand our story, does not have those who died in his family ( Iannucci’s father wrote a teenager for an anti -fascist newspaper and at the age of 17 he became a participant in the partisan movement in Italy - approx. Medusa ). We are acutely worried, the victory was not far [from the events in the film]. So the whole family and I were on the "Immortal Regiment", there you feel - this is the mood, this is this feeling.

- But the war has already passed in the film!

- Well, as passed, eight years [in total]. It was removed so that it causes just a vile sensation, marshals at orders ... This can cause laughter only in people who are not related to Russia who have no involvement with its history, with its victims 75 years ago. And it is very difficult to explain this if a person lives in England or America, these are parallel worlds, it makes no sense to do it.

- In England and in America, many people also died during the Second World War.

- Let's not compare. This is not 26 million. Do you want to compare the losses of England and Russia? Listen, we are not grandmothers on the street to conduct a dialogue at the level of such firmness. Losses are incomparable. You can compare 25 thousand ( during the Second World War, 450 thousand citizens of Great Britain were killed - approx. Medusa ) and 26 million? You can compare the completely ruined European part of Russia and all the other [countries] that simply acquired in this war, having lost a certain number of people. Different things.

I do not advise you to watch the movie after all, because you can’t make it like that ... All these torture, atrocities, groaned eyes are Hollywood tricks.

A few more questions correspondent "Medusa" was asked by Zvelolo after the news that the rental certificate of the film was withdrawn.

- How do you feel about the decision?

- Personally, I am positive. I think this is the right decision.

- Will the film be released in Russia in general?

-Now they will not show him, then there will be some kind of dialogue. It seems to me that the main problem is an unsuccessful time. If there [in the Ministry of Culture] they will find time when it will be possible to show this without prejudice to a certain attitude to the Great Patriotic War, maybe the film will be released. You see, this is the time - [anniversary] of the Battle of Stalingrad, an elected campaign; It seems to me that outside May 9 they will show.

- Does the presidential elected campaign also affect?

- I think, yes, of course, it affects. If some Facebook publications influenced the American elections, as the Americans say, then what film on the eve of the presidential election hits the communist electorate? You don’t have to go to the fortuneteller!

Evgeny Berg