Archive of films You and I / Ty i ya
USSR
1971, 93 min
Section:
Tribute to Larisa Shepitko
Year: 2015
Larisa Shepitko frequently focused on heroes who find themselves in pivotal situations: in this case three characters in their thirties, each of whom is experiencing some kind of crisis. The motif of wandering as a journey towards self-awareness is here associated with the doctor, Pyotr, who ultimately realises that true meaning in life cannot be exchanged for material prosperity.
Synopsis
Life tells us that interpreting recent feelings and experiences artistically can be very difficult, and the endeavour to do so is not always entirely successful. From the very start of her filmmaking career Shepitko set herself demanding tasks, choosing to subject herself to scrutiny through the actions of her contemporaries: people around the age of thirty with their own ideas about life, their own plans and ambitions, but also with their own particular sense of bewilderment, helplessness and failure. The film’s three protagonists are associated by mutual friendship – the elegant Katya and her husband Pyotr, who was involved in neurosurgical research with friend Sasha. Pyotr swapped this strenuous exploratory work for a tempting position as doctor at the Soviet embassy in Sweden; nevertheless, we catch up with him when he begins to realise that the perks of his job cannot compensate for the worthy role he played back home, and now he feels completely empty. This is the moment that becomes the springboard for the director’s multilayered reflection – all the more relevant today when, exposed to the constant lure of outward success, we often turn away from our true vocation. In dramatic terms Pyotr is clearly the most encumbered character in the story and he has to stumble his way through numerous blind alleys before finding the right path. His inner quest finds a parallel in his actual journey from Moscow to the Far East, which allowed Shepitko to weave into the narrative images of diverse places and their inhabitants; together with the protagonist, we observe how they live and what they do. This personal testimony thus acquires a broader dimension, giving the filmmaker the opportunity to express her belief that a person never stops searching for life’s purpose.
Zdena Škapová
Contacts
KAVI
Sörnäisten rantatie 25 A, 00501, Helsinki
Finland
E-mail: [email protected]
www: www.kavi.fi
Mosfilm Cinema Concern
Mosfilmovskaya Str. 1, 119 991, Moscow
Russia
Tel: +7 095 143 9700
Fax: +7 095 938 2083
E-mail: [email protected]
www: www.mosfilm.ru
About the film
Color, 35 mm
Section: | Tribute to Larisa Shepitko |
---|---|
Director: | Larisa Shepitko |
Screenplay: | Gennady Shpalikov, Larisa Sheptiko |
Dir. of Photography: | Aleksander Knyazhinsky |
Music: | Alfred Schnittke |
Editor: | L. Lysenkova |
Art Director: | Aleksander Boym |
Producer: | L. Kushelevic, V. Maslov |
Production: | Mosfilm |
Cast: | Leonid Dyachkov, Yuri Vizbor, Alla Demidova, Natalya Bondarchuk, Leonid Markov |
Sales: | Mosfilm Cinema Concern |
Contact: | KAVI |
Guests
Anton Klimov
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