The advent of cinema not only diversified leisure activities, but also expanded the possibilities of parents and teachers in raising children. While watching films, young viewers and older children learn about the lives of people in different countries, life and customs of peoples of different historical eras, learn to distinguish good from evil, true from false, beautiful from ugly, master moral and ethical standards.
Much attention was paid to films for children in the Soviet Union. Famous fairy tales were filmed, scenarios of fantastic, adventure films were created. Cinematographers did not forget about the relationship of people, the interaction of the individual and the collective, first love. Children's films of the USSR, the list of which covers more than one page, are popular in our time.
What should be a movie for children
Teachers and psychologists believe that children's cinema not only entertains, but also educates. Screen heroes are role models that every child and teenager intuitively or consciously focuses on. Therefore, the filmmakers have a great responsibility for who they show on the screen, how this hero behaves, what the character’s manners, habits, outlooks on life are. Also in children's films violence, erotic scenes, a demonstration of drug addiction, prostitution, and other negative phenomena are excluded. The content of the picture should be clear to children.
All these positions were taken into account by Soviet scriptwriters and directors, so today we have wonderful USSR children's films. The list is approximately the following.
Fairytale Movies
A fairy tale accompanies a person from early childhood, helps to get to know the world around him, teaches children to be kind, optimistic, not afraid of difficulties and find a way out of any, even the most dangerous, situation.
Here is a far from complete list of children's films-fairy tales of the USSR:
- "Kingdom of Crooked Mirrors". The main character of the picture - the capricious Olya - gets the opportunity to look at herself from the side. The girl finds herself in a fabulous country where there is not a single serviceable mirror. Characters have never seen their true guises, do not distinguish truth from lies, therefore hypocrisy, deceit, insanity and malice flourish in the kingdom. Fortunately, Olya manages to bring negative heroes to clean water, find her way home and, most importantly, reconsider her behavior.
- "The Adventures of Pinocchio". The film tells about a restless, overly gullible boy who cannot sit still, sticks his long nose everywhere , refuses to study and gets into various troubles. Despite the peculiarities of his character (and, perhaps, thanks to them), Pinocchio manages to save his friends from the evil Karabas Barabas and help Papa Carlo find the secret door behind which there is a beautiful puppet theater.
- "Cinderella". At the heart of this tale is the idea that kindness, modesty and hard work are rewarded sooner or later.
Adventure and Fiction
It is unlikely that there will be a child or teenager who would not want to prove himself on the best side, to commit a heroic act. Although heroism is not very relevant for representatives of the modern generation, they watch films for children of past years about the adventures of peers with pleasure.
These are such paintings as:
- "Guest from the future." Girl Alice and her friends from the last century neutralize space pirates, thus saving humanity. The children were in serious danger, but they were able to win thanks to strong friendship and mutual assistance.
- "Adventure Electronics". The filmmakers raise a serious philosophical problem regarding what it means to be human. Designed by the inventor, the robot boy tries to behave like a person and only at the end of the film understands that you can stop being a smart machine only when you begin to feel truly human feelings (joy, sadness, compassion, etc.).
- "Great space travel." In Soviet times, many dreamed of flying into space, and the heroes of this film realized their dream. True, the flight was not real, but the trials that fell to the lot of guys and girls turned out to be quite real. During the "expedition", each participant assumed responsibility for the crew members and found a way out of difficult situations.
Here he is, a typical children's film of the USSR. Adventures, the list of which was limited only by the imagination of writers, screenwriters and directors, are in the film adaptation of the works of Mark Twain about
Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, the paintings "In Search of Captain Grant", "Treasure Island" and many others.
Children's historical movie
Films about the country's revolutionary past were shot in the Soviet Union. You can relate differently to the events of the beginning of the 20th century, but one cannot but agree with the fact that children, heroes of historical films, show themselves bold, persistent and courageous (character images are idealized, but this is a tribute to the times), which means they serve as a worthy example for the younger generation. Therefore, the revolutionary children's films of the USSR, the list of which is proposed below, deserve attention:
- "Elusive Avengers". Three guys and a girl find themselves in the thick of the civil war. At a village boy, Danka and his sister Ksanka are killing their father, and the teenagers, together with their friends, vow to take revenge on the killer. Implement the plan fails. The guys miraculously escape from trouble and become soldiers of the Red Army. While watching the film, it seems that yesterday's children are not fighting against someone, but are fighting for the ideals of freedom, kindness and justice. The heroes continue their revolutionary activities in the films The New Adventures of the Elusive and The Crown of the Russian Empire.
- Trilogy "Dagger", "Bronze Bird", "Last Summer of Childhood". In the first film, friends Mishka, Genka and Slavka manage to find the sunken documents and expose the counter-revolutionary organization. In the second and third parts of the trilogy, the guys reveal crimes.
- "Wagtail Army". This picture also tells about how teenagers fought for Soviet power, but actions take place on the territory of Latvia. The name of the bird is an association consisting of three street boys. The guys help the Bolsheviks liberate the city from the White Guards.
Children during the war
From 1941 to 1945, the country experienced the hardships of World War II. Not only adults, but also children fought the fascists. Children's films of the USSR also talk about the resistance of the people to the invaders. List of the best:
- "Son of the regiment." The main character of the story of the same name by V. Kataev Vanya Solntsev lost his parents in the war. The boy was sheltered by Soviet soldiers, whom he helped to fight, obtaining intelligence data. After the death of the battery, Vanya goes to the Suvorov School, in whose cadets he takes part in the Victory Parade.
- "Salty river of childhood." Actions take place on the turbulent Syr Darya River, through which important cargo is transported. The only adult working at the crossing was old Zeynoll. After an elderly person dies, teenage boys take full responsibility for the work performed.
- "Five of the brave." The film tells about the children who helped the Belarusian partisans fight the Nazis. Once they manage to destroy the German arms depot. The operation was so successful that the Nazis thought that it was a partisan detachment.
Relationship Films
In the Land of Soviets, it was generally accepted that schoolchildren and pioneers are exemplary children who behave exceptionally well, do not cheat and do not betray friends, strictly follow the rules of behavior, watch USSR children's films (the list was attached) and dream of labor exploits and military glory. These stereotypes were destroyed by the feature film R. Bykov "Scarecrow".
The plot is based on the conflict between schoolgirl Lena Bessoltseva and classmates. The girl, who was not so successful with her peers, takes the blame of her friend, for which she becomes an outcast. The boycott that the sixth grade students announced to Bessoltseva was a real test, but in the end the girl was on top.
The fact that love is not only happiness, but also serious trials, the heroes of the film "You Never Happened" will learn. Lovers Katya and Roma cannot be together because of the ups and downs of adults around them. Parents try to prevent the development of relations between adolescents, but the result of these actions is sad.
The difficulties of building relationships between a growing person and adults and peers are also described in the movie Wild Dog Dingo.
Children's feature films of the USSR, the list of which can be infinitely supplemented, contributed to the decent education of more than one generation of children. Today, these people, who themselves have become fathers and mothers, are happy to show their favorite movie to their children.