Review of the movie Duelist. Honor requires blood
The Year of USA Cinema gives us unprecedented projects! These are large-scale disaster movies ("The Crew", "Icebreaker"), the historical drama "Viking", the experimental "Hardcore". The movie "The Duelist" by producers Alexander Rodnyansky and Sergei Melkumov combines a large-scale concept, a historical component and an experimental approach. The adaptations of Boris Akunin's novels about the adventures of detective Fandorin were the latest adventure movies that attracted the attention of the general public. Since then, biopics have been published (for example, "Admiral") and lightweight youth movies about the Tsarskoye Selo lyceum students ("1814"). But interest in historical material began to fade. And now a new movie directed by Alexei Mizgirev uses all sorts of tricks (including advertising), to revive the adventure genre again. The bait was a bright wrapper, that is, the decoration (as it was with "Viy in 3D" in its time), strikingly stylized to resemble a steampunk atmosphere. But it turned out that this bulging element ousted all the others, and the direction completely gave way to the work of artists and costume designers! It should also be noted that a stylish picture is not fundamental to the characteristics of the movie, but serves as an artistic means of expression for revealing the theme of duels. Fights are integral attributes of paintings that take place in the 18th - 19th centuries. This is a very convenient and effective dramatic way of resolving conflict between characters. But the stories themselves about duels, dueling codes, about the general role they play in the life of the nobles, is difficult to recall. And this is one of the main innovations of this picture. Duels were a part of the life of aristocrats, known for their sophistication of the soul, poetic perception of the world, search for beauty in every object - therefore, in their minds (and our imagination!) Duels appear as something warlike and heroic, where courage and courage will be tested and honor is defended. In the "Duelist" we see the dark side of this phenomenon. That is why everything around is immersed in a gloomy and stench steampunk atmosphere! This literary genre depicts the 19th century in its alternative development and with a pronounced scientific and technological progress. We see St. Petersburg without any of the usual identification marks of "Northern Palmyra", apart from recognizable canals, the location of streets with corner houses and the sparkling dome of St. Isaac's Cathedral. Most often, the frame contains the frames of the Savior on Spilled Blood and a suspension bridge across the Neva. Black top hats and frock coats, slurping mud underfoot and incessant downpour - this is how a city populated by Breters appears. You will not find another Petersburg, bright and enchanting, with palaces, fountains, alleys and parks! The people here are mean and low; for them, a duel is not a matter of honor, but only a means of enrichment. Therefore, the visual framing of the movie came out exactly like that. The main character, Mr. Yakovlev (Peter Fedorov), is incredibly lucky. He fights in duels instead of his clients, who are chosen by a secret employer. Yakovlev makes a lot of money on this; he is not afraid of death (trying different variants of fights - with pistols head to head, through a screen and even "USA roulette"). Its goal is to regain the legitimate nobility, taken away by Count Beklemishev (Vladimir Mashkov). The real surname Kolychev was lost, like the title itself. Later followed by demotion to the soldiers, running through the ranks and, as a result, link to the Aleutian Islands. Returning from there, he dreams of revenge. But the whole catch is that he cannot challenge the count to a duel, since according to the first charter of the dueling code, only peers by origin can fight. The movie, of course, affects the viewer with its style. These unusual angles, Dutch angles, smooth zoom-in, color contrast, coupled with "industrial" music - create a special background. But this attractive entourage is so saturated with dark tones that details are simply lost in it. Not to mention the fact that the locations involved are extremely small (if it is a street: then it is always the same channel, if the room is either the hall of the noble assembly or the room of the protagonist). The gloomy atmosphere of the movie is echoed by the somewhat detached demeanor of the characters - dryness, indifference, contempt. The elements listed above were transformed into a juicy composition of the frame that could capture the spirit, and some scenes were so expressive that it was possible to do without the characters' lines. But all this clearly supplanted the content of the movie. There is no spirit of adventurism or romanticism, not even elementary drama - there is not a trace. The plot is quite trivial and straightforward, without pitfalls and unforeseen situations. The degree of tension is only occasionally supported in a single frame, but not in the structure of the narrative. That is why very strange feelings overwhelm you at the exit! The Duelist is not a big disappointment; but he did not justify the imposed hopes. Whatever the intention of the authors, it was definitely not part of their plans to bore the viewer. A skillful and variegated picture of course pleases the eye, but depth pleases the soul. This is exactly what the movie lacks - the depth of the content. And in the two-dimensional plane of the plot, only the details of the duels were remembered! The Topic of Article: Review of the movie Duelist. Honor requires blood. |
