The film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Mikhail Lermontov about the times of the conquest of the Caucasus was shot with great respect for the classic work. Many critics recognized the successful selection of actors in "Hero of Our Time". Everyone especially liked the Moldavian actress S. Berova as the Kabardian princess Bela.
general information
The film "Hero of Our Time" in 1966 was shot by the famous Soviet director Sergei Rostotsky, who himself also wrote the script based on the Lermontov work of the same name. The picture (dilogy) consists of two parts: Bela and Maxim Maximovich. Taman.
Among the consultants of the picture are many of the most competent ethnographers - specialists in the North Caucasus, including Studenetskaya - an employee of the Russian Ethnographic Museum and the largest expert on ethnic Adyghe dress. Costume designer was Elsa Rapoport, who previously worked in the first film adaptation of director Isidore Annensky “Princess Mary” of 1955. The music for the film was performed by the famous cellist Mstislav Rostropovich.
About the film
The novel “A Hero of Our Time” is at the very origins of Russian psychological prose, and the image of Pechorin is one of the first descriptions of the complex, controversial inner world of the hero. The film turned out to be lyrical and at the same time tragic, with maximum ethnographic authenticity and literary realism. The director managed to show not only the army life, but also the daily life of the Circassians, with almost complete immersion in the Lermontov text.
The main character turned out to be quite organic, and although many recognized the good game of Vladimir Ivashov, viewers saw only Oleg Dal in this image. He played this role in the television play "Pages of Pechorin Magazine". Among the actors of the “Hero of Our Time”, perhaps it was the most difficult for him, since he was always compared with the “ideal” Dal Pechorin.
Bela
The action takes place at the beginning of the 19th century. The sad story of the Circassian princess tells Maxim Maximovich (Alexei Chernov) to one of the nameless officers with whom he met in the North Caucasus. Translated into the wilderness of the wilderness, Grigory Pechorin is trying to find entertainment for himself. Seeing the beloved daughter of the local prince Bela, he decides to abduct her. For this, she persuades her younger brother Azamat (Rolan Borashvili) in exchange for help in stealing a horse from Abrek Kazbich (Sulambek Mamilov). Sylvia Berova in the film spoke Russian, but sang in Kabardian, which was not easy for the actress, because it is a complex language with many guttural sounds.
Having settled a young Circassian woman, Gregory with gifts and courtship seeks Bela's love. And soon she was bored with him ... The thoughtless act of the young officer causes a stream of dramatic events: Azamat is on the run, Kazbich kills the princess and the old prince. But Pechorin doesn’t care ...
"Maxim Maximovich. Taman"
The second part of the picture takes place five years after the story of Bela. It reveals the circumstances of the service of the protagonist in Taman and elsewhere.
Maxim Maximovich meets Pechorin and recalls a joint service in a fortress in the Caucasus. An old servant asks about Bela. The young officer painfully perceives the question and simply answers that he remembers. Critics noted that Alexei Chernov, the actor of the “Hero of Our Time”, very organically fit into the image of a Russian military officer.
Historical accuracy
Since at the time of writing the novel all the highlanders were called Circassians, in order to recreate the historical surroundings, it was first necessary to determine the nationality of Bela. Ethnographers, having analyzed the text, and according to the description of the mountain landscape, places near the confluence of rivers, wedding ceremonies, came to the conclusion that Bela was Kabardian. And part of the scenes was shot in the area where the aul was once located, from which Bela and Azamat were supposedly born. And among the actors of the “Hero of Our Time” who participated in the crowd, many were from the Kabardian Drama Theater.
The director carefully studied the customs and life of the highlanders - dzhigitovka, Kabardian princely estate, dances and rituals to reliably convey the ethnic atmosphere. Especially a lot of work had to be done on costumes - genuine hats and dresses were bought all over Kabardino-Balkaria, so that later they could be used to recreate the traditional cut and embroidery design.