Published in 1969 in the journal Yunost, Boris Vasiliev’s novel “Dawns Are Quiet Here ...” aroused great reader interest and a desire to raise the theme of “women in war” on stage and in the cinema. The fate of the five girls anti-aircraft gunners, each of which has something to protect, caused a lively response in the hearts of people, and after the adaptation of the story in 1972 by Stanislav Rostotsky, the three main heroines of one film, among whom Lisa Brichkina, already in 2013 the Russians included in the TOP-10 the best female images of domestic cinematography in films about the war. Why was this image so dear to the audience?
Story authors
Boris Vasiliev, who passed away three years ago, was himself a member of the Great Patriotic War, who voluntarily went to the front at the age of 17. He is the author of a number of works in which the theme of an ordinary person is raised, incapable of fighting, but in the conditions of a total war finding internal resources to confront the enemy in the name of the Motherland: “It didn’t appear on the lists”, “There was a war tomorrow”, “Dawns here are quiet ... " Readers empathize with the heroes and hope that they can overcome the trials and remain alive.
The Taganka Theater was the first to stage a play about anti-aircraft gunners in 1971. But at the same time, another participant in the war in memory of the nurse who saved his life, Stanislav Rostotsky, conceived the production of a feature film, the script for which was co-written with Vasilyev. In 1973, the film will be nominated for an Oscar in the category of foreign films, and the creative team will receive the State Prize. Zhenya Komelkova, Rita Osyanina and Lisa Brichkina will become characters for many years associated with the names of the actresses who played them.
Short story
In the deep rear in the territory of Karelia in 1942, there were two platoons of anti-aircraft gunners, where Fedot Vaskov, a participant in the Finnish war, served as commandant of the detachment. In order to avoid decomposition of personnel, quickly getting used to the life of a quiet garrison, volunteers are sent to foreman Vaskova. Among them is a village young lady from the Bryansk region (according to the film from the Vologda region), whose life was spent on a forest cordon - Lisa Brichkina. “And the dawns here are quiet ...” - the story of how the measured life of the garrison is disrupted by the discovery of two Germans in the forest, and a small detachment of five soldiers goes to intercept the alleged saboteurs, whose purpose may be the railway.
Among them is our heroine, since it is necessary to go through the forest, lakes and swamps, which she knows from her life. Being in an ambush, the detachment discovers a catastrophic mistake that cost all the girls life: they are face to face, not against two, but against sixteen well-armed and trained fascist saboteurs. In an unequal battle, they die one after another. Everything is different, sometimes without showing any heroism.
But the whole film, the audience sympathize and worry about the girls, who should have a completely different fate. This terrible war forces them to take up arms, and it is useless to wait on every valor and heroism. Liza Brichkina, sent for help, is so sincere and direct in her willingness to help, that it is impossible to condemn her for the ridiculous death in the swamp, which made reinforcements impossible. The enemy did not pass. The surviving Vaskov, having experienced many losses in his life, accomplishes the impossible, capturing the enemies.
Characterization of Lisa Brichkina
Much of the girl’s character comes from childhood and her difficult fate: father is a forester who instilled knowledge and love for nature; a seriously ill mother, whom the girl is accustomed to caring for from the age of five, accustomed to patience and humility in life; the lack of full communication on the lost cordon, which made her shy and shy. Accustomed from childhood to hard rural work, she managed animals too, and all the housework was on her, and she managed to help her father bypassing his squares. Her whole life was that she cleaned, scrubbed, ran for bread in the general store, fed her mother with a spoon and ... believed in tomorrow.
Lisa Brichkina was lively and energetic, not giving in to difficulties and not allowing herself to cry. After the death of her mother in spring 1941, her father began to drink blindly, but the girl only locked the door from his friends and continued to wait for a bright tomorrow. The hunter who appeared on the cordon, in her opinion, was to be the one who opens the door for her tomorrow. Ready to surrender to a night visitor, she came across a person who understood her condition: “You shouldn’t do anything stupid even with boredom. You need to learn, Lisa. ” He promised to arrange a smart and sensible girl in a technical school in the city, with a hostel. Yes, war prevented this. Involved in the defense of digging trenches, she cleaved to the female anti-aircraft unit, falling into the garrison to Vaskov.
Not knowing in her 19 years of love, the girl immediately falls in love with the foreman. Those who began to make fun of this anti-aircraft gunners soon realize how deeply and sincerely this feeling does not require anything in return, that they begin to perceive it with respect. And Liza, from every praise of the foreman in her heart, is so happy that she received the request to run for help with great willingness. Yes, she was in such a hurry, forgetting the precaution that she would forever remain in the swamp swamp. Seeing the blue sky in front of her, already dying, she reached out to him and still believed in salvation and a happy tomorrow.
Description of Lisa Brichkina and the choice of actress
The author describes the girl’s appearance taking into account the physical load that she performed: she was so healthy that you can plow on it. Dense, stocky, it is not clear where it is wider: in the hips or shoulders. Face, respectively, blood with milk, scythe to the waist. Only in wartime had to cut it. And the warmth from the girl was drawn, as if from a stove. Vaskov cited all anti-aircraft gunners as an example, "there is something nice to see." With all of one constitution, and "all with her."
Choosing actresses for the main roles, Stanislav Rostotsky was looking for young unimpressed faces. There was a casting for the film and third-year student Elena Drapeko, ruddy, snub-nosed, but obviously not in that weight category, as the author described. When, after reading the script, she was asked about who she would like to play, she answered: Osyanin or Komelkova. But they invited her to another role - not as heroic as she wanted. For Rostotsky, the characterization of Lisa Brichkina should have corresponded to her appearance. He expected to see a village girl, noisy, fighting. And after the first shooting days it became clear that Drapeko could not cope with such a character, and she was removed from the role.
The situation was saved by actress Nina Menshikova, wife of Rostotsky. After watching the footage, she told her husband that the purity and light emanating from the girl would truly decorate the picture, causing people to hate the war even more. Elena Drapeko drew freckles, brightened her eyebrows and “relocated” to the Vologda region, adding a characteristic “ojane” to give a village charm.
Filming
In such a reading, the image of the girl moved the viewer so much, linking the actress and the role together, that all further creative activities of Elena Drapeko remained in her shadow. Not having overcome such a high bar, the actress went into politics with her head, being currently a deputy of the State Duma. She warmly recalls the filming process, which allowed her to play the most stellar role in her life. Filming was conducted from spring to late autumn at 18 hours a day. A lot of time was spent communicating with real participants of the Great Patriotic War and watching thousands of meters of film chronicling wartime.
All scenes were played in a situation close to reality. And she had to really drown in a swamp, conveying with her eyes the horror that Liza Brichkina had experienced, a man who was absolutely unprepared for this terrible war.
The heroine from the movie of 2015
On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Victory over the Nazis, director Renat Davletyarov decided to make a new film based on the story of Boris Vasiliev, using a more modern film language. The creative team faced a difficult task: not to turn the picture into a simple remake, bringing it closer to the source. For the new generation, not familiar with the 1972 film, I wanted to convey the whole drama of the discrepancy - woman and war. When choosing actors, the director was interested in finding those who were not familiar with the first version of the picture. So in 2015, a new Lisa Brichkina appeared. The actress who played this role debuted in big cinema. Sofya Lebedeva is a graduate of the Moscow Art Theater School, where she studied on the course of I. Zolotovitsky.
The authors of the script “transferred” her heroine to Siberia, having told about the heavy share of dispossessed peasants. This reinforces the impression of the film, in which the image of the girl was created, despite the life difficulties associated with the socialist system, which has no other fate but to defend its homeland.