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Checkpoint ( Blokpost)
Russia (1998)
About the film
A Russian "Full Metal Jacket," alternately funny and
frightening, with a sharp visual style and a real sense of the burdens
of empire. Somewhere in the Caucasus, in a place like Chechnya, a
platoon of young Russian soldiers searching a village stumble into an
ambush and gun down a civilian. But instead of being praised for
surviving the ambush, the soldiers are disciplined and then punished by
being posted to a remote checkpoint for thirty days. Ironically, their
gripes echo those of western soldiers, and the main "enemy" in
their eyes are the various women-with-attitude who work for the outside
news media, or for the Russian army’s own atrocities investigations
office. Although they sense a constant danger—particularly in the
person of an unseen sniper who takes shots at them from time to
time—the soldiers develop a rapport with the local villagers. The
goal is simple survival.
"Bears Rogozhkin’s trademark fast, witty dialogue and
effortlessly light comedic touches."—Anna Franklin (Screen
International)
Director's filmography
Alexander Rogozhkin (b. 1949) is one of the most important
Russian directors who belongs to the Leningrad Film School, led by
Alexei Guerman. He studied history and art at Leningrad University, then
worked for Lenfilm as art director. From 1977 to 1981 he took a course
in film directing at VGIK. Ginger, Ginger (1981, Ryzaja,
Ryzaja was his diploma film). He returned to Lenfilm and made
For a Couple of Lines (1985, Radi nieskolkih
strochek), A Golden Button (1986, Zolotaya
Pugovitsa) Miss Millionaire (1988, Miss
Milionersha), a shocking story about "slavery" in the
military titled Vigilance (1989, Ostraha), The
Guard (1989, Karaul winner of the FIPRESCI Prize at the
1990 Berlin International Film Festival) The Third Planet
(1990, Trettia planeta), a French co-production, a
naturalistic picture of a revolutionary terror security officer
(1991, Chekist), Life With An Idiot (1993,
Zhizn s idiotom), and the postmodernistic crime drama The
Act (1993, Akt). He received great acclaim with his
comedy Peculiarities of the National Hunt (1995,
Osobennosti nacionalnoy okhoty). In the same comic spirit and
with the same actors he then made Operation "Happy New
Year" (1996, Operatsiya S novym godom for
television) and The Peculiarities of National Fishing
(1998, Osobennosti nacionalnoy rybalki)
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85 min., color, 35mm
Russian with English subtitles
Director: Alexander Rogozhkin
Screenplay: Rogozhkin
Dir. of photography: Andrei Zhegalov
Original score: Vladislav Panchenko
Music: Wagner, Haydn, Berlioz, Mendelssohn, Schubert, Mozart,
Moussorgsky
Editor: Julia Rumyanceva
Producer: Konstantin Ernst,
Sergei Selyanov
Production: ORT, STW Film Co.
Cast: Roman Romantsou, Kirill Ulianov, Ivan Kuzmin, Denis
Kirillov, Egor Tomoshevsky
Contact: Intercinema Art Agency,
Dryzhinnikovskaya 15
123 242 Moscow, Russia
vox/fax: (7095) 255-90-52
vox/fax: (7095) 255-90-82
email: intercinema@glasnet.ru
THE HOLLOWAY
FILE
Database of Russian and Ex-Soviet Union directors
FREEDOM FILM FESTIVAL POSTER
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