Imaging Russia 2000: Film and Facts
by: Anna Lawton
Published by: New Academia Publishing
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Reviewed by Kathy Perschmann
Author Lawton is an adjunct professor at Georgetown University, teaching about Russian film.
This book covers the years 1990 to 2000, and much of that time Lawton was living in Russia, working at various jobs, including a weekly column on film for the largest English language paper, the Moscow Times. Her deep knowledge of Moscow at this time, the Russian “psyche” and her experiences with film and filmmakers make this book genuinely fascinating.
Chapter 1 is an introduction, basically covering some of the major changes in the economy, the market, changes in the Filmmakers Union and other pivotal institutions.
Chapter 2 is History in the Making and on Screen.
Chapter 3 is New Babylon—urban violence, mobsters, hit men, and everyday life.
Chapter 4, Faraway in Space and Time, covers fantasy worlds, dystopias, and wars.
Chapter 5: The last chapter is Laughter through Tears.
More than 80 films are reviewed—some by new directors, some by stars of the past like Mikhalkov and Ryazanov. One poignant comment on how capitalism and the “free market” affected film is that the new freedoms allowed them to sink into ”...chernukha (dark and gloomy) and pornukha (pornography)...,” One producer is quoted as saying that the absence of censorship turned into an “obstacle,” rather than a “stimulus.”
Lawton’s anecdotes on daily life, Moscow, and society during these years are interwoven through her reviews. I know there are several films that I am anxious to see, including Ryazanov’s Starye klyachi (Old Nags).
Armchair Interviews says: A unique look at Russia related to film.
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