Many probably watched the Soviet film by George Danelia “Kin-dza-dza!”, Shot in the dystopian genre. Some words from the picture entered our colloquial language, and the phrases of the heroes became stable expressions. One such find is the word pepelats. "What is it?" - a question arises for a person who has not watched this amazing film.
It turns out that this is a fantastic
aircraft, specially invented for the picture. Now, some motorists affectionately call their car. And the word "pepelats" is used when it comes to helicopters, airplanes and other flying devices.
Recall the plot of the film
The heroes of the picture, Uncle Vova and Violinist, by a strange coincidence, find themselves on a planet called Pluk, lost in the universe. At first, the earthlings decided that they were in the Karakum desert - sand dunes all around. It is unbearable heat. Locals here are very similar to people, but have the ability to read minds. Uncle Vova and Violinist, realizing that they were on another planet, are looking for a way to return to Earth.
To do this, they need a spaceship, which is called Pepelats here. Heroes get acquainted with the artists Bee and Uef, who have such a miracle machine. But in order to make an interplanetary flight, a gravitappa needs to be attached to the device. After all, as you know, the pepelats from "Kin-dza-dza!" - This is a machine that can move very long distances in a matter of seconds only with this part. Earthlings begin the search for the gravitappa they need.
It turns out that the greatest treasure on the planet Plyuk are KTs - ordinary matches. Unaware of this, Uncle Vanya and Violinist give them away to local crooks. But later, the heroes discover the last match. They hope to exchange her for gravitsappu. But soon the heroes lose their last trump card. Locals Bee and Uef, hungry for profit and hoping on Earth to find a large supply of KC, decide to help earthlings return to their homeland. They take them there in their pepelats. But the planet Alpha stands in their way, whose inhabitants do not like the inhabitants of the Kin-dza-dza galaxy. Heroes have to land here. On Alpha, Uncle Vova and Violinist are found by a barefoot old earthling, by the will of which they got here. He returns them to Earth.
Machine device
Let's try to describe what the pepelats represents. What is it? This question arises for everyone who first sees this miracle machine. The device is quite bulky - 5-6 meters in height, 3 meters in diameter. It has a cylindrical or ovoid shape. At the top of the car is a small crossbar that rotates during flight. Pepelats is not suitable for transportation. However, some of its types may be equipped with wheels. As a rule, such a modernization of the mechanism is preferred by the poor inhabitants of the planet Pluk - those who do not have sufficient funds to purchase fuel. Transporting this equipment is not so easy. Due to the bulky size, it is difficult to move it on the quicksand of the planet Pluk. As a rule, this requires four people at once.
For control purposes, the mechanism is equipped with two emergency catapults. They can be used only with horizontal flight. One important detail: with the help of this equipment it is possible to completely eliminate or at least reduce overloads on a person traveling on a pepelats. One of the catapults is combined with a toilet, where sand is used as a flushing agent. There is also a brake system. True, the principle of its action is unknown. For its proper operation, a brake fluid created on the basis of alcohol is required. Some inhabitants of the planet Pluk, not differing in exemplary behavior, sometimes use this substance inside.
Atmospheric flights
Pepelats from "Kin-Dza-Dza!" - This is a device for moving both in the atmosphere and in outer space. If the flight is carried out at a low altitude, then the speed of the mechanism is low (100-150 km / h). However, the rise time to a given mark takes only 2-3 seconds. By car, you can make interplanetary flights. But for this, the device must be equipped with a gravitsappa.
This item has a small size (10-15 cm in length) and an ovoid shape. It is made of metal. This part is inserted into the so-called flange, resembling a large nut. To bring the device into operation mode, you must click on it.
Pepelats with gravitsappa - interplanetary spaceship
Planet Pluck is technically more developed than our Earth. It is difficult to imagine that a mechanism has been created here that can deliver its crew to anywhere in the Universe in a matter of seconds. It is equipped with gravitsappa pepelats. What is it? How does he move? Let's try to find the answers to these questions. Flying on a pepelats in this mode resembles teleportation. So with great speed it happens. Just a few seconds - and the owner of the mechanism is transferred to another point in the Galaxy. True, it takes a little longer to warm up the machine for interplanetary flight - a few minutes.
Fuel for the "miracle car"
What is necessary for the movement of any car? Of course, fuel. Since this device is fictitious, not existing in our world, the fuel for it must be fantastic, fake. Lutz. That is the name of the fuel used to fill the pepelats. What is it? To answer this question, you need to turn to some episodes of the film, which refers to this fuel. From the dialogue of the heroes of the picture, it becomes clear that Lutz is a substance based on hydrogen, obtained from water. Fuel is sold through lucifer dispensers, which can be either automatic or serviced by local residents.
How was the pepelats invented?
The photo presented here gives you the opportunity to examine in detail what this fantastic mechanism represents.
The story of its creation is interesting. Artist Theodor Tajik specially for the painting "Kin-Dza-Dza!" made a three-meter layout pepelats. But the workers at the studio of the Mosfilm film studio refused to make this device. I had to use improvised material. An old and unusable Tu-104 aircraft was found at a landfill. With great difficulty, the tail was cut off from it. This detail of a former plane was coated with polyurethane and set on fire. This was done in order to “undermine” the mechanism a little. After all, as you know, he had to pass through the dense layers of the atmosphere. But they didn’t calculate a little with arson - the pepelats caught fire. After the fire was extinguished, before the eyes of the developers appeared apparatus, to put it mildly, "battered". It was he who was shot in the picture. It is worth mentioning that in total three such devices were made: this one, on a scale of 1:12 and the size of a children's toy.
Interesting story with pepelatsami
Filming took place in the Karakum desert, which is located in Turkmenistan. It was there that the goods were sent by rail, called nothing more than "pepelats". However, at the arrival station, the railroad workers could not find these devices. After all, they did not know what kind of word that means. Pepelats went further and, accordingly, was not delivered to the place of filming. The director of Mosfilm had to connect to the search for the KGB, so as not to completely disrupt the project. The mechanism was found only a month and a half later at a station in Vladivostok. Because of this incident, the filming time had to be postponed from spring to summer. And this, as you know, is the hottest period in the desert of Turkmenistan.
Some interesting facts
- The smallest of the three Pepelats disappeared from the film studio immediately after filming the picture. Apparently, someone put the props in his pocket for memory.
- Fans of the work of G. Danelia managed to find answers even to questions such as "What word did the name of the mechanism come from? What does it mean?" Pepelats is an aircraft. It turned out that in the Georgian language there is a similar expression. And if you translate it literally, it sounds like a "butterfly." This word has already appeared in Danelia’s films. We are talking about the film "Mimino", where the main character affectionately calls his helicopter "ashes."
- The crossbar that rotates during flight in this device is the axis of the rotor of the helicopter.
- Filming, as you know, took place in the desert. No traces of cars or people were to be seen here. But how to achieve this? After all, the mechanism is very large and heavy. In order to move it, you still need equipment. Here's how the director of the picture solved this problem: to transport the pepelats, a platform and a tractor were used, which first rode along the dune, and then immediately to the camera. In the next shot, a large-scale apparatus was given, which by itself covered all traces of movement.
- At one of the next film festivals, the director of the film, G. Danelia, was approached by a certain American director, impressed by the "special effects" of the picture, and asked to share a secret. The surprised master of Russian cinema asked him to express himself more clearly. Danelia asked the American: "What kind of special effects? In my film they are not." To which the director from the USA replied: “How is it so? A rusty barrel flies in the frame. Isn't this a special effect?”
Word pepelats from the movie "Kin-dza-dza!" Today
- There are two different musical groups with the given name. One of them plays blues rock, the second - "old" songs.
- Invented a computer flash game called "Pepelats".
- In Izhevsk and Anapa there are entertainment centers with the same name.
- Archaeologists working in the excavation of Denisova Cave, the cable car needed for their special needs, ironically called Pepelats.
We found out what the word "pepelats" means. Despite the fact that it is fictitious, in our life it has found its application.