The Soviet film "Love and Pigeons" is a classic of Russian cinema. The film, which was watched with pleasure over thirty years ago, is still watched with pleasure.
Plot of the film
The Kuzyakin family lives in the village, they have three children. Vasily - the head of the family - is engaged in breeding pigeons and works in the timber industry farm. In compensation for an industrial injury, he receives a ticket to the sea. There, Vasily meets Raisa Zakharovna. The woman fascinates the hero with her stories and stories. Between Vasily and Raisa Zakharovna there is a novel. The beloved write a letter to his wife Nadezhda, in which they inform that they will live together.
Very soon, Vasily returns home to the village. Son Lenka reacted extremely negatively to the return of his father, therefore, fearing his reaction, Vasily and Nadezhda, who had forgiven him, begin to meet secretly. Soon Hope becomes pregnant and Vasily returns home.
History of creation
The film "Love and Pigeons" was released in 1984, and the premiere took place in early 1985. The film is based on an absolutely real story written by the actor of the Omsk Drama Theater Vladimir Gurkin and shown at the Sovremennik Theater. The premiere of this play was Vladimir Menshov, who later directed the film.
Vladimir Gurkin became the screenwriter of the picture. As he later pointed out in his interview, his parents became the prototypes of the main characters - Nadezhda and Vasily. The characters of the neighbors of Uncle Mitya and Baba Shura were written off from their grandfather and cousin.
The surname of Kuzyakina is also not accidental; neighbors in her hometown of Gurkin wear it.
Most of the filming took place in Karelia, in the city of Medvezhyegorsk, and in the Mosfilm pavilions.
Alexander Mikhailov - one of the actors of the film "Love and Pigeons" - almost drowned during the filming.
Actors and roles
The actors of the film "Love and Pigeons" are perfectly matched. Their acting work and the roles played by them, still cause delight not only among film critics, but also among ordinary viewers. It is no coincidence that the film fell in love thirty years ago and is still loved.
One of the main roles in the film, the role of Vasily Kuzyakin, was played by Alexander Mikhailov. At the moment, the actor is 73 years old, but he continues to act in films and play on the stage of the theater. Behind Mikhailov more than 75 roles in the cinema and more than 50 in the theater. However, when approving the roles in the film "Love and Pigeons", the actor was not seen as a leading actor. According to the artistic council, Mikhailov and Kuzyakin had absolutely nothing in common. But Menshov insisted on his own, and his instinct did not disappoint.
The role of Nadezhda Kuzyakina happened to play Nina Doroshina. The role in the film went to her by chance. After all, Nadyuha in the play "Love and Pigeons" at the Sovremennik Theater, she just played. And when Menshov saw the play and decided to make a film on it, in the main role he saw only Doroshina and no one else. The director was shocked by the play of Nina, her talent, the way the audience reacted to her game: they laughed like crazy, then cried sobbing.
For a long time, the director could not pick up the actress for the role of the homeowner Raisa Zakharovna. Some actresses simply refused the role, others were "rejected" by the artistic council. But as soon as Lyudmila Gurchenko flew from vacation and caught the eye of Menshov, the director had no doubt. Lyudmila Gurchenko was ideally suited for the role of the "fatal" seducer.
Other brilliant actors took part in the film: Sergey Yursky, Natalya Tenyakova, who in real life are a married couple, and the neighbors Uncle Mitya and Baba Shura played in the film.
The roles of the Kuzyakins children went to Lada Sizonenko (Olka), Yanina Lisovskaya (Lyudka) and Igor Lyakh (Lenka).
Interesting Facts
Now the photos of the actors of the film “Love and Pigeons” are not difficult to find, because many of them still play in films and theater, despite their considerable age. With the exception of Lyudmila Gurchenko, who died not so long ago.
Filming the last scene, where the characters stand and smile joyfully at the flying doves, lasted only 20 minutes. Panic reigned on the set at that time, but the actors of the film "Love and Pigeons" masterly played their roles, and the moment was shot from one take.
At that moment, when shooting scenes from the rest of Vasily Kuzyakin, November was on the street. Water temperature barely reached 14 degrees. But Lyudmila Gurchenko and Alexander Mikhailov, bathing in ice water, did not even give a look. It was not easy, and extras in the background. After filming this scene, the director also bathed in cold water in solidarity with the artists.