Our recent reviews of films based on works by the Strugatsky Brothers – read the others here and here – come to an end with this adaptation by themselves and Soviet art-house favorite Tarkovsky. This was the only adaptation that they openly approved of and, … Read More →
Tag Archives: russia
‘Hukkunud Alpinisti’ hotell (1979; dir. Grigori Kromanov)
Like Es ist nicht leicht ein Gott zu sein (1989; dir. Peter Fleischmann) – which we reviewed here – this Estonian film is based on a story by the Strugatsky Brothers, famous Russian authors with a penchant for mixing hard sci-fi with cod-philosophy. This, like … Read More →
Es ist nicht leicht ein Gott zu sein (1990; dir. Peter Fleischmann)
This West German and Russian co-production mixes historical drama with science fiction, creating an alien world with odd decor and costumes so its unfamiliar setting becomes a bastard version of the Dark Ages. Although realistically brutal and dirty in the way Hollywood ignores, the performances … Read More →
Desyat negrityat (1987; dir. Stanislav Govorukhin)
This lacklustre adaptation of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None (London: Collins, 1939), retains the original, racist title and general plot structure, but, like most Soviet films, lacks the sense of atmosphere necessary to raise Christie’s work from the merely diverting to the truly … Read More →