A Russian movie to avoid

Films/DVD Asylum

Movies from comedy to drama to your favorite Hollyweird Star.

I know some of you will be wading the waters of Netflix, looking for safe bets, and many would consider any Russian film in that category.
Well, while most Russian films that we can get our hands on in the West are indeed good, having been selected, there are, of course, some rotten apples.
Enter the Air Crew. Don't be dooped by an intriguing description - for it simply represents the worst of movie making. Created in 1980, at the hight of the most stale periods in Soviet culture, it has nothing to offer... besides a couple of semi-nude shots of an attractive Russian actress, whose appearance is about as removed from the Hollywood standard as Pravda of that period from New York Post.
In fact, the movie shows so much technical imperfection it is hard to believe it is a work of a rather good director, known for his earlier films.
Of course the Westerner would also have to deal with the most atrocious dubbing job that I can recall - the voices remind you those of cartoon characters, which is shame, as there are several scenes in the film where serious dialogue is supposed to take place, and the parties to it are played by very good actors - shame that all that is lost.
Air Crew is a Soviet disaster movie, without a doubt inspired by the dreadful Airport, and driven by burning Party official' desire to create the Soviet answer. As most such events, this one falls flat on its face - needless to say the role model put simply - sucks, and anything modeled after such an achievement is bound to suck to.
There are some wonderful actors involved in this mess. Georgy Zhzhyonov, who died just a few weeks ago, was one of the most loved Russian actors. He had voice, presence, smile, manners that made him one of the most attractive utterly inattractive leading men. In some way he would remind you of Fernandel - tons of charm behind a stony and almost ugly, in conventional sense, face. But as I said, his personality has difficult time coming through the caricature dubbing and awful script. Shame...
Yekaterina Vasilyeva is another great actress, and here, too, the Westernization killed most of her charm.
One would have to dig hard to discover redeaming values in this monumental flop, and sure enough there are a few. The film gives you a reasonable shot at dreary, gray life in the 1980 USSR. Details abound. The characters' apartments are extremely typical and can be studies in slo-mo for their details - it is all there. The Russian airplane, the TU-154, looks completely obsolete even by the 25 year old standards, with its antiquated cockpit dials, its monstrous, 4-man crew (with just ONE stewardess, though!), its open overhead cargo shelves in place of modern locked cargo compartments, its military-heritage engines, so out of place on a passenger plane... the court chambers that will remind you of the Ivan the Terrible torture cells more than any court room you had seen in a Western movie. All those details DO present some points of interest for a viewer with love for historic truth.
But those are just small wrinkles on the otherwise smooth and boring landscape, like a few rocks in the desert.
Intrigued? Well, what can I say, for your buck-fifty this might not be such a bad deal overall, given the few interesting details, a pretty actress and an unusual disaster twist. Where else will you see a crew member repairing the hole in the fuselage IN FLIGHT, at 500mph? Hammering aluminum sheets with no nails?
I think the film, in spite of all its crude nature and gross imperfections, WILL produce some laughs and even thoughts, and therefore... I do recommend it as an entertainment, with all the caveats above... don't get angry with me later.
But hey, that buck-fifty will not even buy you a sandwich.

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Topic - A Russian movie to avoid - Victor Khomenko 06:08:09 12/29/05 (1)

And it looks like you're a Russian to avoid! nt - clarkjohnsen 09:06:13 12/30/05 (0)

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