Russian Movies

[slim 1,533]

Was your wife uncomfortable with the scene where Viggo had to prove he wasn't gay? A couple of my cow-orkers watched it and both said their wives pretty much flipped over that. One of them had to fast-forward through it. I guess I've been desensitized to violence by all those videogames or something. *shrug*

That kind of thing "would never happen in America" and that's why people here are so repulsed by it. That and we've never seen it. There aren't too many movies here with sex scenes at all so when there is one, especially one that's graphic and somewhat "taboo" many people have a hard time dealing with it. Then you throw in the whole cultural aspect of prostitution, human trafficking, statutory rape, etc., etc., etc., and it's even harder for people here to deal with. Folks in America have never had to witness things like this. It's just not a part of our culture and even in arts and media it's been downplayed to such an extent that most fail to acknowledge it's existence, even choosing to consciously ignore it to the point of denial.

Was my wife uncomfortable? No way. Not that it's a daily occurance in her culture, but she's seen and heard of things like this happening her whole life so to see it in a movie was no big deal, the same as it was no big deal for the your co-workers' wives when there were murders on the movie. People get murdered everywhere, what's the big deal if it's on a movie?

We watched a show on Dateline or CNBC or something like that the other day where they went undercover in Phnom Penh and went to brothels where 9-year-old girls were being pimped to foreign sex tourists. The intent of the show was to do a sting and shut down a few of these brothels, arrest their staff and those that engaged in their services.

After the show, we were talking about it and instead of us feeling appalled and saddened and surprised that this sort of thing was going on we were more perturbed by the film crew's lack of foresight into what would become of these kids now and who was going to fill the void created by them "saving" the kids in the show. Obviously we both didn't want to see these kids in that situation but the reality is they are, and in many parts of the world, that's just the way it is. We ended up with a "stupid Americans" type conclusion on the whole issue because instead of the crew and producers attempting to combat the root cause of the problem and do something about it, they were simply making a story in attempts to "shock" viewers with someone else's reality.

I've heard a lot of TV people say their shows are all about raising awareness and through that awareness we can fix the problems. I haven't heard too many say "this is why the situation is so horrible for these people and in order to change it, we here in America are going to have to sacrifice this." Why don't they say that?

Ratings.

Nobody wants to see a 14-year-old girl get raped by an underworld figure. But show a sting operation where they bust the guy, the pimp, the guy who forged her documents, the corrupt cops who let it happen, and at the end of the day, everyone feels better.

And then it happens again the next day. With a new girl. With a new pimp. With a new shady underworld figure. And it's not because we couldn't bust them all, it's because it's reality.

[Brian & Elena 0]

Just an FYI...most DVD players have codes that you can input into them using the remote control that will allow them to play all region codes of DVDs. They are fairly easy to find on the internet. My in-laws gave me a DVD player here in Russia for my birthday and of course it is a region 5 player. I wanted to play some of my US (region 1) DVDs on it so after finding the code I was quickly able to unlock my player and play all DVDs.

Also you can download subtitles in English for most DVDs and then reburn the DVD on your computer with the new subtitles added in.

HTH

[slim 1,533]

Also you can download subtitles in English for most DVDs and then reburn the DVD on your computer with the new subtitles added in.

HTH

Not with the ancient rig I'm running here at home. I think my cell phone has more virtual memory left. And a DVD burner? You must've bought your computer within the last 5 years. How fancy!

I seriously need a new get-up. What do you guys think is the friendliest for the dual-language and programming issues that we might face? I've heard the Macs are awesome but I don't know if I can ever stop supporting the Gates foundation.

Thoughts????

[Chuckles 0]

I concur. Mac compatibilty and software availability are things of the past. I used to hate apples etc. I'm not one of those apple/mac nuts either, but you got to admit when things have changed. I have a vested interest in PC's, but to friends I do not necessarily recommend them.

[slim 1,533]

I guess I'm stuck in the dark ages with a PC or a Mac.

Really, the only things I want in a computer are the ability to surf the web ( ), send and receive e-mails, and print out a document here and there, maybe even with a picture on it.

Gaming, DVD burning, even watching a DVD, all that stuff is cool, but I have absolutely no need for that on my home computer. It would be nice to bootleg some movies off the net, but that's just an added bonus. Right now, I don't even have Power Point or any of that BS so when people send me junk with boobies in a slide show, I can't even view it. No big deal, but when I start typing college papers (someday) they seem to want that stuff in Power Point or whatever. I know it's an easy download and install, but to be honest, I don't even want all that junk on my computer.

It's like my dad with the cell phone I guess. "I want to call someone and have someone call me. I don't need all that fancy-shmancy number storage and camera phone and video game #######. And what the hell would I write someone a message for when I'm on a phone? I'd just call 'em."

I've heard nothing but good things about the Mac. Probably after we win that lottery we'll end up jumping over to the other side. And then we'll start driving a hybrid and drinking triple-mocha low-fat soy decaf lattes, carrying our groceries home in hemp bags, supporting a cause, etc., etc., etc.

Nah, since I'm lazy, I'll just pick the easiest one, and that seems to be the Mac. But we'll see what the boss wants. I'm sure she'll read some post on one of those sites where all the rich Russians say which computer is best. Or, whichever one ends up on Dom2 commercials.

The one we'll end up with, will be the cheapest one!

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

I am reading this thread with interest, because I am keen to find good Russian movies to watch - not just worthy arthouse stuff that gets a NY-LA release, but movies Russians actually go to see. Unfortunately, I speak no Russian and have no one to explain cultural nuances.

One of my favorite movies of all time is Come and See - it pretty much leaves every other movie made about the horrors of war irrelevant. Whenever I see those "top war movies EVER MADE" things on AMC which declare its really Saving Private Ryan I get the urge to throw my TV out the window.

[slim 1,533]

I'll have to check that one out.

A day without a war flick is like a day without sunshine.....

[eekee 182]

I am reading this thread with interest, because I am keen to find good Russian movies to watch - not just worthy arthouse stuff that gets a NY-LA release, but movies Russians actually go to see. Unfortunately, I speak no Russian and have no one to explain cultural nuances.

One of my favorite movies of all time is Come and See - it pretty much leaves every other movie made about the horrors of war irrelevant. Whenever I see those "top war movies EVER MADE" things on AMC which declare its really Saving Private Ryan I get the urge to throw my TV out the window.

I love Come and See too.

If you have netflix, I would check out their selection of Russian films. There's not much, but they have all of the most famous ones and they all have subtitles.

[slim 1,533]

I'm still waiting on Come and See. It's in the queue on MoscowFlix. Shouldn't be too long and I'll be able to jump back on here with a review.

I saw Day Watch and it was pretty good. Like the Matrix only with vampires and a Russian spin. That's not really my kind of movie but I'll sit through and watch it. It's still entertainment!

Last night I watched The Hunting Party (Richard Gere, Terrance Howard) and was thoroughly entertained. It wasn't a Russian movie but it took place in the aftermath of the Kosovo conflict (which is flaring back up again) so it had that whole "it just doesn't make sense" factor those familiar with Russia will understand.

[native 0]

I found a Russian video shop in my city and found myself holder Peter FM in my hand. He told me it was a code 5 DVD. I asked him if he had any code 5 DVD players and he sold me a Phillips and taught me how to recode it to be a code zero machine. Now it plays my Russian videos and my American videos just fine.

Lets see I think this may become Russian movie review thread so I will put in my two cents.

Moscow cries no tears - older movie set in the 50's or sixties, a bit hard to follow and a song that I cant seem to get out of my head, the wife thinks this if funny but it is driving me mad...

Crimson sails - older movie, decent plot, a little silly and the girl in it is crazy insane. Kind of fairy tail story.

Railway station for 2 - Elena likes older movies, kind of cheesy plotline, guy takes a trip, goes to eat lunch at a rail stop, refuses to eat the swill, refuses to pay, misses his train, falls in love with rude waitress kind of funny dialogue, and the acting is not great.

Burnt by the Sun - The russian version of Ishtar - extremely long with little to no plot or point to the movie. Very propaganda based movie - only redeeming feature is the main character Kotov is the boyfriend of the woman in Railway station for 2. All I know is that if I could have walked out of the theater I would have. Elena kept waking me up because I was missing this cinematic gem of a movie. Never again... I have lost 3 hours of my life I will never get back.

Well that is about all for the 4 movies we have watched so far. If anyone else has any recommendations or warnings Id love to have them.

yes" moskva slezam ne verit"(moscow doesnt beleive in tears is a classic,1979,and it won best foreign film in usa that year. i like it,i have probobly watched it 5 times.

"the 9th company" or as he said "company 9"or "9 company" in russian is very good also. especially if you are a vet.

the movies my girl tells me about like "mongol" and "angel a"(french director Luke besson) are the ones i havent seen that i want to see very much.

just my 2 kopecks:)

[slim 1,533]

"the 9th company" or as he said "company 9"or "9 company" in russian is very good also. especially if you are a vet.

the movies my girl tells me about like "mongol" and "angel a"(french director Luke besson) are the ones i havent seen that i want to see very much.

just my 2 kopecks:)

9 POTA is an excellent film! I saw it as kind of a Tigerland meets Full Metal Jacket meets Hamburger Hill all remixed into Russian. If you get suckered into watching a Russian movie with your wife, this is the kind of movie you want to see!

And if you liked this one, check out Okhota na Piranyu. A solid action movie with some funny parts.

My sister-in-law just brought us like 439 movies on 8 discs or something like that. (Gotta love the bootleg guys in the Metro station.) Mongol and Angel A are among the ones on my "to watch" list. Now if only I could find the time.....