The work of Mikhail Bulgakov “The Master and Margarita” is one of the most mysterious novels of the 20th century. Mystical events accompanied most of the film adaptations of this book. Often with the leading actors, strange incidents occurred. Some actors of the series “Master and Margarita”, filmed in Russia in 2005, were no exception.
The television series "The Master and Margarita" by Vladimir Bortko
The book of Mikhail Bulgakov, despite its difficult history (it was written in 1937, and published only 30 years later), became a real event in the literature. Shortly after the publication on the basis of the storyline of the novel about Ga-Nozri in Poland, the film "Pilate and Others" was shot. In the same year, the Yugoslav adaptation of the novel appeared, which was quite different from the original.
The first film adaptation closest to the text of the work was the Polish television series of 1989. In Russia, for the first time, the great novel was transferred to the screen only in 1994. However, this was one of the best adaptations in history. In 2005, a new version of the novel “The Master and Margarita” was shown on Russian television screens. Despite the fact that many critics spoke negatively about this film adaptation, at the moment it is the most accurate. This was facilitated by the fact that the project consisted of 10 series. It is noteworthy that some of the actors in the series “Master and Margarita” have already starred in the 1994 film. They were Alexander Filippenko and Valentin Gaft.
In addition to accuracy, the television series of Vladimir Bortko had a lot of other advantages. First of all, this design. The tape was shot in black and white, imitating films of the twenties of the XX century. However, when miracles begin to happen, the image becomes color. As for the cast, almost one star was chosen to participate in the film. Because of this, the project turned out to be slightly oversaturated. In addition, not all the actors in the series “Master and Margarita” (photo below) did a good job with their roles.
Oleg Basilashvili as Woland
Oleg Valerianovich has long been a living legend of the movie. On the screen, he managed to create completely different images: the careerist Samokhvalov in “Office Romance”, behind the train in love with the “Station for Two”, a faithful servant of the fatherland - Count Dmitry Prizorov in “Dreams”.
In “The Master and Margarita” he got the role of Mephistopheles, who arrived in Soviet Moscow to look at its inhabitants, as well as hold a ball. Unfortunately, Voland Basilashvili was not very successful. And it’s not a matter of talent, the actor played excellently, it’s just that Oleg Valerianovich has a type of tired intellectual. At that time, the prince of Darkness at Bulgakov, despite centuries of tiredness, was quite cheerful, and under the hour tough. This side of Voland Basilashvili’s character could not be conveyed. It is worth noting that Valentin Iosifovich Gaft, who played this role in the 1994 film, did a much better job. By the way, in the 2005 film adaptation, Gaft played the high priest to Kaif and Beria.
Margarita performed by Anna Kovalchuk
The main female role in the film went to the star of the television series "Secrets of the Investigation" - Anna Kovalchuk. Margarita from the actress turned out great. Kovalchuk managed to convey many facets of the character of this heroine: the mortal fatigue of a single woman, and the excitement of a witch, and the royal dignity of the ball hostess. To participate in the film in some scenes, she even had to play naked.
If you compare it with Anastasia Vertinskaya, who previously played Margarita, Anna Kovalchuk turned out to be more similar to the book original. By the way, in 2014 she played Gella in the production of “The Master and Margarita” by A. Noskov. There is a legend that all the actors who take part in the film adaptation of the novel are pursued by evil rock. Soon after the 2005 television series was released, rumors circulated in the press that her divorce from her husband was the curse of Kovalchuk. However, this was an erroneous statement, since the couple divorced much earlier, and after the film they just legalized their gap.
Alexander Galibin as a Master
Like many actors in the series “Master and Margarita”, Alexander Galibin was known before. His most famous roles are Prince Jacques in "Donkey's Skin" and Vasily Kapralov in "Jack Vosmerkin -" American ".
The role of an intelligent Master, who, due to the envy and narrow-mindedness of those around him, ends up in a psychiatric hospital, Galibin perfectly succeeded. His hero, it seems, has just stepped off the pages of the novel. The highlight of the image was the amazing voice of the Master, which actually belonged to Sergey Bezrukov, who also played in this project. In an interview, Galibin admitted that after participating in a television series he nearly died in a car accident. Although he is not superstitious, he believes that something mystical affects the actors playing in The Master and Margarita.
Sergey Bezrukov as Yeshua
Who this actor is is not even worth specifying. Having become famous after the "Brigade", he played all the most interesting roles in Russian cinema: Yesenin, Pushkin, Vysotsky and many others. Sergey is a real celebrity. This actor has so many roles that Valentine Gaft somehow joked that he was afraid to die, because after his death Bezrukov would definitely play him.
The role of the prophet Yeshua turned out great for the actor, and the scenes with his participation are one of the best in the series. He got used to the image so well that many viewers at first did not recognize the famous artist. Critics only noted that for the wandering prophet Yeshua, the artist was too well-fed. However, even this could not overshadow the excellent work of Bezrukov, who also voiced the Master. If you compare his game with the performance of Nikolai Burlyaev in the 1994 film adaptation, it’s hard to say who is better. Both actors coped with dignity, and each of them turned out to be his own special Yeshua.
Kirill Lavrov, Alexander Abdulov, Valery Zolotukhin, Vladislav Galkin, Ilya Oleinikov and other deceased actors of the series
Master, Margarita die at the end of the television series, bodily, to find peace in another world. But in reality, over the past 10 years, there are no 18 actors participating in the 2005 series. Usually, when a public person dies, they always look for a secret in this, and when there are a lot of dead? In recent years, rumors of the curse of Bulgakov’s novel have intensified.
However, it should be borne in mind that mostly stars were invited for the television series. And many of them were far from young. In addition, some managed to star in other films after the project "Master and Margarita." The series (the deceased actors in most cases suffered from chronic diseases) was one of the last works for Kirill Lavrov, who played Pontius Pilate. In 2007, he died of leukemia. This artist during his professional life played many excellent roles in cinema and theater: from Lenin to Lord Bolingbroke. Pontius Pilate in his performance came out excellent. Although the image turned out to be softer than that of Mikhail Ulyanov, who played this hero earlier.
Another famous actor whose death is associated with Bulgakov’s curse is Alexander Abdulov (“Formula of Love”, “Wizards”, “Genius”). He played the bassoon - one of Woland's servants. Despite the excellent acting, it is worth noting that Alexander Filippenko, who performed this character in a previous film adaptation, Korovin came out much more interesting.
In 2010, under strange circumstances, Vladislav Galkin died in his apartment (“Truckers”, “Kotovsky”, “Voroshilovsky shooter”). In the series, he played the poet Ivan Ponyrev. Most likely, the artist was given this role because of his typical Slavic appearance. He played well, but Sergey Garmash, who had previously played this role, looked more like a man who lived in his twenties.
2 years after Galkin, Ilya Oleinikov died (Gorodok, Kolkhoz Interteyment, Twelve Chairs). The actor, who played the financial director of Variety Rimsky, died of lung cancer. He was only 65.
The following year, Valery Zolotukhin (Bumbarash, Little Tragedies) passed away. He played in the television series Nikanor Bosogo.
In recent years, some other actors of the series “The Master and Margarita”, who were not as famous as the above, have died. These are Andrei Tolubeyev (Aloisiy Mogarych), Yuri Oskin (doorman), Galina Barkova (saleswoman), Valentina Egorenkova (nurse in a mental hospital), Stanislav Sokolov (Pilate secretary), Dmitry Poddubny (NKVD spy) and others. Although the number of deaths is really large, however, it is worth considering that most of the other actors in this and previous adaptations are still alive and well.
“The Master and Margarita” (TV series): actors and supporting roles
In this project, even small roles took famous artists. A vivid example of this is Dmitry Nagiyev (played the traitor Judas and Baron Maygel), Vasily Livanov (doctor of a psychiatric hospital), Ivan Krasko (taxi driver), Andrei Urgant (entertainer), Alexander Pankratov-Cherny (director of Variety), etc.
Of particular note is Alexander Filippenko. In a previous film adaptation he played the bassoon. However, in the 2005 series, he received the role of Azazello. Unfortunately, the great artist was not very able to display the versatility of this character. It is worth noting that earlier Koroviev succeeded him much better.
Entertaining facts
It is worth highlighting some facts that it would be interesting to know for fans of the series:
- Initially, the role of Woland was offered to Oleg Yankovsky. But he did not agree, saying that people should not play God and the Devil.
- Kirill Lavrov and Mikhail Ulyanov, who played the roles of Pontius Pilate in the film adaptations of 2005 and 1994, were very close friends. They even died one month apart.
- Despite the fact that the project is the largest in the entire history of the film adaptations of Bulgakov’s novel, some scenes from the work did not appear on the TV series “The Master and Margarita”.
- The 2005 series (actors often improvised) is full of moments that are neither in the book nor in the manuscripts of the author. So, Korviev in one scene says: “Like children!”, Which is a reference to the painting “Genius”, in which Abdulov played a major role. In the television series, the name of the Master is casually mentioned - Maksudov Nikolay Afanasevich. This reference leads to the Yugoslav film adaptation of 1972.
Despite many negative reviews and the fact that the series is clearly inferior to the 1994 film adaptation, “Master and Margarita” by Vladimir Bortko is a very interesting project. In addition, thanks to the serial format, the screen managed to transfer most of the novel. As for the acting, many performers coped well with their roles, creating a really good series.