David O'Connell
Russian Resurrection Film Festival 09: HIPSTERS
August 19th 2009 22:15
Hipsters (2008)
Director: Valery Todorovsky
Cast: Anton Shagin, Oksana Akinsha, Yevgeniya Brik
Bright, brash and oh so bold, if this film was in English it would be a world wide smash. A musical comedy with lashings of drama, Hipsters (Stilyagi in Russian which actually translates as ‘teddy bears’), follows Mels (Anton Shagin), a budding Young Communist in 1950s Moscow. Mels is a member of Komsomol, the youth branch of the Communist Party, who, mindless and dull in their drab Communist grey, take it upon themselves to raid the clandestine parties of the techni-coloured hipsters, who with their love of jazz, fashion and all things American, the Komsomol see as enemies of the State.
It is during one such raid that young Mels meets Polina (Oksana Akinsha), a hipster who pushes him into a pond in order to make her getaway. Naturally this leads Mels to fall in love with her. His relentless pursuit of Polina propels him to take up the Hipster lifestyle to which he takes with an enthusiasm that surprises everyone, not least his Komsomol comrades and Polina herself. Of course in the Hipsters world, they become known as Mel and Polly.
Although director Valery Todorovsky has not confirmed it, is it widely believed that Hipsters is an allegory of Putin’s Russia, where those who dare to be different are singled out and the film industry, like the rest of the Arts, is becoming increasingly controlled by the State. In 2008 Putin took over the new Cinematography Committee, which means he essentially vets all future cinema projects. The film even contains a clever rephrasing of the famous Putin line “You’re not a traitor. You’re an enemy” when one of Mels’s old Komsomol buddies declares, “You’re worse than an enemy. You’re a traitor!”
For his part Todorovsky simply states that the film is about freedom and the intrinsic desire to stand out and not be just another grey face in a grey crowd. “It has nothing to do with the 1950s. It is true for anytime”, he claims.
Todorovsky has delivered has a visually stunning feast of a film. The cinematography is superb and the mostly young cast turn in convincing performances, particularly Yevgeniya Brik who plays Tanya, the head of the Komsomol and a formerly close friend of Mels who, jealous of his relationship with Polina and his new found Hipster identity, is the one who brands him a traitor. Some of the musical numbers are quite thrilling, particularly He Doesn’t Need An American Wife, which actually had me hitting the rewind button more than once.
If there is one weakness it is the relationship between Mels and Polina. In my last review I spoke of my disdain for unlikely scenarios in film whereby two strangers meet in random places, more often than not trains, and promptly fall in love. Well, Hipsters features another pet peeve of mine. Namely, why do hapless, hopeless, gawky men relentlessly pursue unwilling women who are so far out of their league they are actually playing a different ballgame, so often in cinema? Worse still, why are they always encouraged by the directors? We know they are encouraged because they always get the girl! Making up for a painful adolescence perhaps? To be perfectly honest, I wanted Mels to fall in love with Tanya and show her how good life can be out of the control of the Party.
But I digress. I am able to forgive the unlikely relationship because Hipsters is less about the love story and more about the unbridled spirit of youthful rebellion, the quest for freedom and how all too often the dreams of our youth are swallowed by the inevitable passing of time and the pressures of a world we can’t change, no matter how much we may want to.
Hipsters took out the awards for best film and cinematography at the Russian film awards the Nikas. It screens in Sydney as part of the Russian Film Festival on Saturday 22nd August at 9.30pm, Friday 28th August at 6.45pm and Sunday 30th August at 3.30pm. All screenings at the Chauvel Cinema in Paddington. For session times in other cities go the festival website:
www.russianresurrection.com
-Ruby
Director: Valery Todorovsky
Cast: Anton Shagin, Oksana Akinsha, Yevgeniya Brik
Bright, brash and oh so bold, if this film was in English it would be a world wide smash. A musical comedy with lashings of drama, Hipsters (Stilyagi in Russian which actually translates as ‘teddy bears’), follows Mels (Anton Shagin), a budding Young Communist in 1950s Moscow. Mels is a member of Komsomol, the youth branch of the Communist Party, who, mindless and dull in their drab Communist grey, take it upon themselves to raid the clandestine parties of the techni-coloured hipsters, who with their love of jazz, fashion and all things American, the Komsomol see as enemies of the State.
It is during one such raid that young Mels meets Polina (Oksana Akinsha), a hipster who pushes him into a pond in order to make her getaway. Naturally this leads Mels to fall in love with her. His relentless pursuit of Polina propels him to take up the Hipster lifestyle to which he takes with an enthusiasm that surprises everyone, not least his Komsomol comrades and Polina herself. Of course in the Hipsters world, they become known as Mel and Polly.
Although director Valery Todorovsky has not confirmed it, is it widely believed that Hipsters is an allegory of Putin’s Russia, where those who dare to be different are singled out and the film industry, like the rest of the Arts, is becoming increasingly controlled by the State. In 2008 Putin took over the new Cinematography Committee, which means he essentially vets all future cinema projects. The film even contains a clever rephrasing of the famous Putin line “You’re not a traitor. You’re an enemy” when one of Mels’s old Komsomol buddies declares, “You’re worse than an enemy. You’re a traitor!”
For his part Todorovsky simply states that the film is about freedom and the intrinsic desire to stand out and not be just another grey face in a grey crowd. “It has nothing to do with the 1950s. It is true for anytime”, he claims.
Todorovsky has delivered has a visually stunning feast of a film. The cinematography is superb and the mostly young cast turn in convincing performances, particularly Yevgeniya Brik who plays Tanya, the head of the Komsomol and a formerly close friend of Mels who, jealous of his relationship with Polina and his new found Hipster identity, is the one who brands him a traitor. Some of the musical numbers are quite thrilling, particularly He Doesn’t Need An American Wife, which actually had me hitting the rewind button more than once.
If there is one weakness it is the relationship between Mels and Polina. In my last review I spoke of my disdain for unlikely scenarios in film whereby two strangers meet in random places, more often than not trains, and promptly fall in love. Well, Hipsters features another pet peeve of mine. Namely, why do hapless, hopeless, gawky men relentlessly pursue unwilling women who are so far out of their league they are actually playing a different ballgame, so often in cinema? Worse still, why are they always encouraged by the directors? We know they are encouraged because they always get the girl! Making up for a painful adolescence perhaps? To be perfectly honest, I wanted Mels to fall in love with Tanya and show her how good life can be out of the control of the Party.
But I digress. I am able to forgive the unlikely relationship because Hipsters is less about the love story and more about the unbridled spirit of youthful rebellion, the quest for freedom and how all too often the dreams of our youth are swallowed by the inevitable passing of time and the pressures of a world we can’t change, no matter how much we may want to.
Hipsters took out the awards for best film and cinematography at the Russian film awards the Nikas. It screens in Sydney as part of the Russian Film Festival on Saturday 22nd August at 9.30pm, Friday 28th August at 6.45pm and Sunday 30th August at 3.30pm. All screenings at the Chauvel Cinema in Paddington. For session times in other cities go the festival website:
www.russianresurrection.com
-Ruby
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Comment by Anonymous
"Stilyagi in Russian which actually translates as ‘teddy bears’"
Stilyagi in Russian actually means "stylish" , i don't know who the hell told you about bears..yeah bears, vodka, snow and balalaika...
Sources: fluent in Russian