[FilmReview]Zerograd(1988)

EnglishTitle:ZerogradOriginalTitle:GorodZeroYear:1988Country:SovietUnionLanguage:RussianGenre:Comedy,Drama,MysteryDirector:KarenShakhnazarovScreenwriters:KarenShakhnazarov,AleksandrBorodyanskiyMusic:EduardArtemevCinematography:NikolayNemolyaevEditing:LidiyaMiliotiCast:LeonidFilatovOlegBasilashviliVladimirMenshovArmenDzhigarkhanyanYuriySherstnyovEvgeniyEvstigneevPyotrShcherbakovAlekseyZharkovTatyanaKhvostikovaLenaZhanikAleksandrBespalyyRating:7.7/10EventuatedbeforetheeventualdisintegrationoftheSovietUnion,KarenShakhnazarov’sZEROGRAD,hisfifthfeature,isabiting,ifnonetoogrippingallegoryofagreatnation’simpendingabout-turnfromtotalitarianstatismtoWestern-influenceddemocracy.MaroonedinthisZerograd(“zerocity”)isanengineerfromMoscow,AlexeyVarakin(Filatov),thefilmstartswithhimdisembarkingfromatrain,littledoesheknow,hehasdescendedintoarabbithole.Alexeyisanawfullynicesofttouch,thestraightarrowtypethatservesasaudience’sproxy,andinthecity,whatheencountersisabureaucratic,bizarre,authoritarianclutterofconfusionandfrustration,thingsarecompoundedafterhebecomesakeywitnessofasuicide(orisit?conspiracytheoryisfloatedbutunresolved),heisofficiallyinstructednottoskiptown,andevencondonestheadvicefromtheprosecutorthatheshouldassumetheidentityofthedeadman’sson(what’sthelogichere?),sothathecanbebroughtfirsthandtoseethedeclarationofanewepoch,andhemightrunbutwillheescape?Allisforetoldbyanangelicyoungboyhemeetsbefore.Shakhnazarovispoliticalinquiteanequivocalway,theoldguardisrepresentedbytheprosecutor(Menshov,strenuouslyemotingconvictionandlater,humiliationwithpropriety),whoholdsforthontheloftygrailofcommunism(whichisutterlyintelligibleandpersuasive),buthasnoswayinfrontoftheheadofthecitycouncil(Shcherbakov)andthecelebratedwriter(Basilashvili),evenhisheroicsuicidalactisaflameout,theProcrusteanwindofchangeisirrefragable.ButisShakhnazarovanardentadvocateofdemocracy?Judgingsolelyfromthisfilm,itissafetosaythatheretainsaleeryeye,hemighthavealiberalmind,butlibertyisn’tsomethingthatcanbepursuedinitspurestform,theSovietUnioniscreakyandbucklesundermisrule,however,ithasanimmemorialspirit,aninherentstatehoodthatitsboogie-woogiechildrenshallneverforget.IfShakhnazarovisn’tasupernalfilmmakerofvisualfinesseandmostmembersofitsmale-dominantcastisfartoogrimandstarchybysimplyperforminginrote,whereastheiroppositesexisdismallyreducedtoperipheralciphers,namely,anudesecretary,aglamorouswomanfunctionsmerelyasachauffeur,oravoicelessmatronwhosesincererequestofadanceisinterruptedbythemaleintrusion,ZEROGRADstillremainsamarveltowatch,notmerelyvalidatedbyShakhnazarov’ssensiblepoliticalconcernsandhishomegrowncompassion,butalso,moreimpressively,bytheastonishingtableauxvivantswhichcropupinthemidstreamandnearthecoda(offeringironic,anachronisticremarkstofurthermuddythewaters),creditedtoitsproductiondesignerLyudmilaKusakova.Ittakessometimeforviewerstodiscernthatthosemuseumexhibitionsareactuallyactorsinheterogeneouscostumesandundermaquillage,betrayedbytinymovementsthatarealmostimperceptible,whatbillowsoutisthatstrangearomaof“magicalsurrealism”thatiseversofertileintheEasternEuropeancinemaedifice.referentialentries:PavelJurácek’sCASEFORAROOKIEHANGMAN(1970,8.0/10);EmilLoteanu’sTHESHOOTINGPARTY(1978,6.4/10).本文版权归作者他他所有，任何形式转载请联系作者。