Do you know that once the movie was called "The Great Mute"? As early as the beginning of the 20th century, screen movie heroes could not utter a sound on the screen and desperately reproduced all emotions with the help of gestures and exaggerated facial expressions. Mute dialogs were accompanied by mandatory screen captions, so that the audience could understand the meaning of what was happening. All films were necessarily shown under the musical accompaniment of a taper (pianist). The first show of the picture with sound took place in 1922 in Berlin. And when was the premiere of the first sound film in the USSR, you know? We will tell readers about this in our article, and also about what the film was called, about its plot, director and actors.
The first blockbuster of the Soviet Union
On the first day of July 1931, a film with the memorable title "A ticket to life" was released on the screens of Moscow, opening the era of sound in Soviet cinema. When the first sound film in the USSR was premiered at the Colossus cinema, the hall was jam-packed. According to eyewitnesses, people in the auditorium both cried and laughed. The success of the tape was overwhelming! This film has become one of the most beloved among the Soviet people. In popularity, deafening and boundless, it could be compared, perhaps, only with the film "Chapaev" and the trilogy "Youth of Maxim", also released in the 30s.
People at that time were full of enthusiasm, faith in the triumph of communism and convinced that the USSR was the most advanced country in the world. So much has been conquered, built, and now also the premiere of the first sound film - there is something to be proud of. A ticket to life was purchased for display in 26 countries. Our cinema broke into world screens. At the Venice Festival in 1932, the tape was recognized as one of the best. Yes, and today, despite the fact that more than 80 years have passed since its release on the screens, the Voucher looks interesting.
Plot
The premiere of the first sound film in the USSR owed much to its success not so much to a new sound never heard before in movie theaters, but to an extraordinary interesting plot. The film tells the story of a labor commune, in which there is a difficult re-education of street boys under the leadership of a charming and at the same time wise security officer named Sergeyev.
The picture takes place in 1923. It was then that there was a peak in the growth of street children in a post-revolutionary country. According to official figures, a huge number of them were registered - 7 million people. The problem was very acute, this issue was taken under the control of the Cheka. And the film “A ticket to life” was based on the story of a commune that really existed in the 1920s, in which talented teachers managed to rehabilitate street hooligans and criminals into “new people”.
Film director
The first sound film of the USSR was born thanks to a director named Nikolai Ekk (his real name is Ivakin). He was also the author of the script. After “A Trip to Life”, this talented person shot a lot of films, but they all didn’t reach the first sound in popularity ... In 1932, Ekk received the title of best director at the 1st IFF in Venice.
Leading actors
The film "A ticket to life" starred many famous artists who played the role of teenage street children. This is George Zhzhenov, our legendary Mikhail Zharov, Yyvan Kirla, Rina Zelenaya. At that time they were already adults, but organically were able to transform into children. The main role of the Chekist-teacher was played by Nikolai Batalov. It was one of his first "star" roles.
How was the film criticized?
The premiere of the first sound film in the USSR made a lot of noise. The film brought well-deserved fame to its creators. But not without criticism. After the premiere, several devastating articles appeared in the press. Cinema was criticized for “thug romance”, ideological mistakes, etc. The director was furious and very offended by such a misunderstanding of his work. But still, when re-playing the film in 1957, he will take into account many criticisms and remove the thieves couplets and dialogs from the picture, so that the film will be shorter by as much as 20 minutes.