“Oscar” struck “Sunstroke” – BBC

The Russian Oscar committee has put forward a candidate for the Academy Award in the category “Best Foreign Language Film.” Chairman of the committee director Vladimir Menshov said that unanimously elected a picture of Nikita Mikhalkov’s “Sunstroke” – freestyle screen adaptation of the story, and records from the book of Ivan Bunin “Accursed Days».

The picture has was awarded the national prize “Golden Eagle” in the category “Best Film 2014″, which caused mixed reactions in professional circles, as Mikhalkov is the founder and patron of the prize.

The operator picture Vladislav Opelyants received Shanghai Film Festival prize. But the Russian critic commended the work of more than restrained, the press was dominated by negative reviews.

Today, however, commenting on the decision of the committee, director and head of the film concern “Mosfilm” Karen Shakhnazarov told Tass that he considers the film worthy of any award. “Big, decent work. I am pleased to hear this news, it is a decent choice ».

However, one can not but admit that the nomination of” Sunstroke “in a sense, surprise – the film Mikhalkov released in Russian rolling back last October, well before nominated for “Oscar 2015″ “Leviathan” by Andrei Zvyagintsev.

However, in the history of this painting everything is connected with a certain test of time. The idea came from the director of the film even in the 1970s. Then one of my colleagues even said Mikhalkov, they say, if you can pass on the screen at least 20% of the heady spirit fills Bunin’s prose, he can rightly be considered a true master. In the 37 years that have passed from concept to implementation, Mikhalkov loved movies in the grand style, and in accordance with this attachment grew and the idea pictures of watercolor sketches turned into a large-scale pasty painting.

The basic plot remains the same – the flash fleeting passion that arose between the young lieutenant and his casual acquaintance to ply the Volga boat. However, this episode in the interpretation Mikhalkov was the only one of the links in the damn chain of events that led to the collapse of the Russian empire and terror, that in anticipation of the death of the aged hero meets in a camp for prisoners Whites. In order to build the narrative, the director splice “Sunstroke” with diary notes, published under the title “Cursed Days”, and some motifs from the works of Ivan Shmelev.

Big success Russian hire “Sunstroke” had, and soon after theatrical premiere took place on the television show on channel “Russia 1».

A few hours before the meeting of the Russian Oscar Committee Nikita Mikhalkov has admitted to journalists that He does not expect to be nominated and he “no longer care.” “I am now more interested in working than withdraw and wait for glory,” – said Mikhalkov news agency TASS.

His “Oscar”, Nikita Mikhalkov was in 1995, when the “Best Foreign Language Film” were recognized as “Burnt the sun. ” In addition, the director was nominated for this award three times: in 1993 – with the film “Urga – Territory of Love” in 2008 – for his film “12,” and in 2011 – for the film “Burnt by the Sun – 2 at the Citadel.” The last extension was accompanied by scandal, committee chairman Vladimir Menshov refused to sign the final protocol of the meeting.