First of all, the village is an inexhaustible source of traditions that are firmly rooted in the lives of its inhabitants. Until now, much has been happening there as it has been going on for centuries, and these actions have a very strong sensual and emotional background. Perhaps that is why the movie about the village does not lose its relevance in our chaotic modernity.
Associations close to everyone
For many citizens, the homeland is still a Russian village, not spoiled for wealth, hardworking. This is nature, sometimes harsh, but unusually beautiful. Usually the whole village lies as if in the palm of your hand. The distant barking of the yard dogs merges with the bleating of goats and the moo of cows grazing in a flowery green meadow away from the streets. A dusty country road goes into the fields and gets lost behind the forest. The air is clean, life is measured - grace! Such a movie about the village is shown to directors Boris Barnet in the comedy Alyonka (1961), Sergei Gerasimov in the drama Country Doctor (1951), Stanislav Rostotsky in the melodrama It Was in Penkov (1957).
From horror to drama
The pictures of foreign creators turn out to be somewhat different; in their works there are few light colors. It turns out that movies about the village are shot in a wide variety of genres. The most famous film projects with the same and self-explanatory names - “Village” - are: Indian adventure drama (1995), drama co-produced by Great Britain and Switzerland (1953), American drama by Richard Pearce 1984, exciting German horror film (2009) and two seasons of a drama series produced in the UK.
Shelter of calm and inspiration
It seems that only in the village you can truly feel and feel the notorious scope of the Russian soul, praised by many creators, the peculiarities of mentality. For creative people, life in the village is sweet and attractive in its own way. Space, majestic calm, the beauty of Russian nature are the strongest sources of inspiration, which sometimes gifted individuals so need. Not without reason, many cultural masterpieces were created far from the bustle of the city, when the creator could retire with his thoughts, ideas.
Some filmmakers, making a movie about the village, portray it spiritually clean and beautiful, while others convey to the viewer an absolutely opposite image - a beggar living on the principle of “only to survive, not to die of hunger, not to freeze in a fierce winter”.
Great turning point
In Soviet times, rural themes became almost leading, and the problem of the “great turning point” is still relevant today. It should be noted that it was collectivization that prompted many filmmakers to take up coverage of such a relevant topic.
Soviet cinema about the village, it would seem, was supposed to tell everything about the fate of the Soviet peasantry, to show the true state of things. But still this period remains largely a mystery, because it is customary to remain silent about it. Back in the early 30s in the USSR it was forbidden to mention hunger, natural disasters and even bad weather. Therefore, Soviet cinema about the village does not reflect reality and is replete with propaganda cliches. For example, such films: “Tractor Drivers” (1939), the iconic film “Kuban Cossacks” (1949), “Generous Summer” (1950), “Wedding with a Dowry” (1953), “The Fate of Marina” (1953), “Another's Relatives "(1955)," Father's House "(1959), the film adaptation of" Virgin Soil Upturned "(1959)," Simple History "(1960)," Evdokia "(1961)," Cook "(1965)," Indian Kingdom "(1967) ), the sparkling musical comedy “Wedding in the Robin” (1967), “Two on the Road” (1973), “For the Matches” (1979), “Vasily and Vasilisa” (1981), “Gypsy Happiness” (1981), “Three Times” about love ”(1981),“ Monogamous ”(1982),“ White dew ”(1983),“ Girl from the city ”(1984),“ Go and see ”(1985),“ Don't Aboud look "(1988). The series “Shadows disappear at noon” (1971), “Aniskin and Fantomas” (1 episode, 1973) and “Eternal Call” (1973) made their contribution to shaping the image of the socialist village.
Folk movie about love
A wonderful movie about love in the village was shot by Vladimir Menshov (Love and Pigeons, 1984) and Vasily Shukshin (Kalina Krasnaya, 1978).
- “Love and Pigeons” is a film that, after watching, will forever remain in the hearts of the viewer who loves high-quality, kind and sincere films. Menshov seems to speak a universal language, which is the "language of the people." In addition to irony, love and pigeons, in the picture there are clearly “role models” clearly recognizable by each compatriot.
- “Viburnum red” is a folk tale with a tragic end, the rarest genre exception in the Soviet film industry, where all the tragedies were supposed to end optimistically. Her melodramatic anguish stirs the soul of everyone without exception.
Russian cinema about the village
It is obvious that the 90s became an unusual era for Soviet cinema, which gave up its last spirit, degenerated into a heterogeneous and defocused observation of what is happening with the help of a movie camera lens. The events of those times had an interesting effect on the perception of Soviet directors. Naturally, Russian cinema about the village turned out to be diverse - from hilarious and light comedies to deep tragedies and dramas: “Do not play the fool” (1997), “Do not send us ... a messenger?” (1998), the mini-series “Plot” (2003), “The Old Women” (2003), “The Enchanted Plot” (2006), the series “Matchmakers 3” (2008), “Vanka the Terrible” (2008), “No Need to Sorrow ”(2010),“ Petrovich ”(2012). All these pictures to one degree or another have a sentimental character, as these are films about our reality, about us. Therefore, their domestic viewer perceives them not by reason, but by feeling. Western film critics and viewers do not understand them, they have a different mentality. Such a different movie. The old village is the only thing that is common to them.