“The guy from our cemetery” (actors: A. Pal, I. Zhizhikin, V. Sychev, A. Ilyin, K. Kazinskaya, P. Shashuro) is a comedic horror of 2015 about the dead, existing “by concepts”. It is impossible to clearly name the creation of the union of brothers-directors Ilya and Anton Chizhikov as a comedic horror. This is an action movie with mysticism, and an ironic thriller. The debut film of the Chizhikovs is valuable in that it is an ironic game with low genres, extremely rare in domestic cinema.
Basic data
The basic data of the movie “The guy from our cemetery” (2015) is encouraging: the debutant directors (Ilya Chizhikov has on his account a thoughtful short film “Ushelets”), a truly Spartan budget that motivates authors to fiction and a subgenre of the comedy-gothic horror almost unknown and undeveloped domestic unknown mass culture.
Group of creators
Producer Sergei Selyanov has a delicate sense of talented people, so without hesitation he made an offer that is difficult to refuse to beginner talents in directing. The producer discerned the potential in the authors, which allowed them to later realize a phantasmagoric plot in a ridiculous wrap, with all signs of reality. This is how the movie “The guy from our cemetery” turned out. We should also pay tribute to the debutant of the big movie screenwriter Vladimir Seryshev. He not only adapted the story underlying the picture, but also came up with a name that indicates to the viewer an ironic rhyme with the classic “Boy from our city” classic.
Rarity in domestic cinema
The fertile soil of all dark supernatural matter: mysticism, death, horror, fear, a nightmare, on which the masterpieces of American, Roman, but especially Korean and Japanese film culture sprout, are not developed at all in Russia. This is evidenced by all film critics who analyze the trends of the genre and domestic horror, leaving reviews. "The guy from our cemetery" replaced the children's camp folklore like horror stories about the Red Spot or the Black Hand.
Laughter is the best medicine
The fact is that in the domestic film industry there are no projects in which horror would not be squeezed out of the real into fairy tales or fantasies, with which it is much easier to survive. The generally accepted Russian mentality and, perhaps, the only way to deal with horror is laughter. Perhaps that is why all the domestic films that were taken seriously in the horror genre, such as the project of Nikolai Lebedev's "Serpent Spring" or "Dead Daughters" directed by Pavel Ruminov, turned out to be not entirely successful (viewers left not very flattering reviews about them). “The guy from our cemetery” is a completely different matter. This becomes especially clear if we take into account the global trend of the zombie horror, which, due to the frequency of use, has exhausted its terrifying potential and began to drift towards comedy, then the appearance of the Chizhikovs project in this format is quite logical.
Plot
The film “The guy from our cemetery” in the storyline surprisingly maneuvers between comedy and horror, ironic and scary at the same time, but without abusing complex structural constructions, gradually taxiing to the beaten path of gangster cinema. The main character is a guy from the deep province of Kolya, in order to pay off debts and earn money to repair his grandmother’s house, he comes to a relative in the capital. Vasily Ivanovich, the uncle of the hero, arranges him for a position that is considered profitable by the people, a guard on a secluded suburban graveyard. But the ostentatious humility of the cemetery turns out to be imaginary. For a short period of time, five security guards, the predecessors of the protagonist, fled from work in an apparent clouding of reason. During the day, fussy visitors of various stripes would certainly bring them troubles, and with the onset of darkness frightening figures in long hoodies walked between the tombstones. Also, rumors persist among locals about a psychopath-maniac who has successfully built a lair in an old cemetery crypt, successfully operating in the surrounding area. But Nikolai, a recent demobilization, reacted steadily to this whole obviously unhealthy atmosphere. Needless to say, who served in our army, not only does not laugh in the circus, but reacts more calmly to the deeds of the dead, the living are more dangerous. This is a short, without spoilers description of the tape “The guy from our cemetery” (2015).
Classic action hero
An interesting fact in creating a picture can be considered casting. Almost all of the actors who took part in the filming of the film “Guy from Our Cemetery” came to the project almost by accident. The best proof of this fact can be the choice of an actor for the main role. A. Pal was initially invited to play the role of a completely different hero, but expressed a desire to try his acting talent in a fresh positive heroic role. The authors did not fail, having approved the leading role, because Pal embodied on the screen the image of the canonical hero of the militants, and in exactly the way the creators wanted. The result was a domestic Rambo, or rather, Danila Bagrov.
On the shoulders of the whole movie
The lead actor, actor Alexander Pal, 90% of the time is in the frame, withstanding a decent load, calmly carrying the whole picture on his shoulders. His inimitable comedy timing and the ability to hold a serious mine in idiotic situations are two talents that the artist has already managed to demonstrate in the movies in recent years: in the short film “Accidentally”, the dilatory book “Gorky!”, In the almanac “Without Borders” and in “Raggy” the union. " According to published reviews, “The guy from our cemetery” elevated the actor to the rank of stars, but Pal risks becoming a hostage to his own role. Alexander gives an account of the situation and, judging by the latest pictures of the actor, is trying to turn the situation in unexpected directions.
Main advantage
In addition to the leading role, in the film there is a cameo by Vladimir Sychev, known to the viewer as Lech Psikh from Fizruk, Ilya Ogurtsov from Reutov TV, and Alexander Ilyin from the same Fizruk, the comedy Firs 3, Kitchens . They play their roles in a quality manner and look quite appropriate in the format of a cozy bi-movie without any complaints. All the actors are good, no one is hacking. In general, a certain unpretentiousness is considered the main advantage of the picture (at least film critics say so, leaving reviews). “The guy from our cemetery” is generally similar to a cheerful skit, played out and shot in the same scenery with an enviable sense of humor - sometimes ridiculous, but very confident, and most importantly, in Russian. Having shifted all the comedy accents from their overseas horror to their own horror, the creators built a plot on solving pressing everyday issues: how to get a residence permit in Belokamennaya, who should be entrusted with the common fund, what’s the truth, brother. Everything is painfully familiar - one hero against the mass of the bad, for all the good. Only a certain tendency of the creators of the picture to romanticize the criminal way of life scares, maybe it's just nostalgia for the "dashing" 90th.
Summary
From this film, with due ingenuity and courage, an analogue to “The Evil Dead” or “Cemetery of Pets” could be obtained. The Chizhikov brothers should pay tribute at least for the fact that their low-budget debut was a good cocktail from crime comedy, thriller and hot satire. Also, the picture can be attributed to moralizing ostrootsotsialnoy drama, the moral message of the tape is correct and relevant. Well, to the unpretentious farce of the authors can be attributed to their attempt to ridicule the people's propensity for superstition and the statement of the creators about the existence of the otherworldly. This contradictory dualism should be considered a minus of the picture.