1612
by Vladimir Khotinenko
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Artur Smolyaninov, Mikhail Zhebrovskiy, Pyotr Kislov, Ramon Langa, Violetta DavydovskaDirector: Vladimir Khotinenko
Brand: Koch International
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); Russian (Original Language)
Format: Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.77:1
Running Time: 135 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2009-04-07
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: E1 Entertainment
Product features:
- The battle for Russia begins! After the brutal massacre of Tsar Boris Godunov and his family, Russia is thrown into a chaotic power struggle. Moscow slips into lawlessness, and as Prince Pozharsky tries to regain order, the massive Polish and Swedish armies have set their sights on conquering the great empire. Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: FOREIGN Rating: NR Age: 74195266709
Movie Reviews of 1612
Movie Review: There is More than a PAL
Summary: 5 Stars
I watched the movie 1612 in Russian with no sub titles in PAL format when I was in Ukraine during the summer of 2008. I know very little Russian therefore I had to go by the action of the movie & ask questions along the way. Basically the movie was about the time when the Czar's seat was empty after the death of Czar Boris Godunov. The Polish-Lithuanian government/army with the help of the Roman Catholic church moved into the political vacuum & tried to influence Russian culture, religion, & political leadership. The hero of the story Andrey was once a friend of Princess Ksenia, the daughter of Godunov, who was taken as a political prisoner by the Polish-Lithuanians & Andrey was made into a slave or serf. Later when they see each other from a distance, Andrey has himself sold to a Spanish Mercenary who is hired by the Polish-Lithuanian army to perfect their cannons. Later the Spanish Mercenary teaches Andrey to fight & when the Spanish Mercenary meets an untimely death, Andrey pretends to be the Spaniard. The story continues with a love triangle & large battle for the city of Moscow.
The year 1612 is to Russians as 1776 is to Americas: freedom from an outside power & development of ones own cultural identity & purpose. The Unicorn seen in the movie is a symbol of old Russia before the Double Eagle symbol of the Czar & is shown several times as a dream scene to convey what was lost & could be regained.
The war scenes are top notch with lots of stand-ins with fantastic Polish-Lithuanian Calvary with angel wings. The movie does get a little bloody during the battle scenes, but isn't that real war?
History versus Movie Making: In the movie the Russians are defending Moscow from the Polish-Lithuanian army, but historically the Russians attacked a Polish-Lithuanian garrison within the Kremlin because the Polish-Lithuanians were already in Moscow.
Controversy: the movie was commissioned by the Kremlin & may hold certain Russian political ideals because it was released on November 1, 2007 to help with the new "National Unity Day" to celebrate the retreat of the Polish-Lithuanian troops from Moscow around November 4, 1612. This new holiday replaces the old Soviet November 7 celebration of the 1917 Revolution.
Rating PG-13 or R?: Russian films don't go by our system of rating. There is some female nudity in the movie when young Andrey sees the princess take a bath with her female court, but the scene is not too offence. Normally any movie about war will included a certain level of violence which should be considered.
What makes this movie so profound is the portray of a Starets, which is a Russian Orthodox spiritual director who normally is clairvoyant, who is also a Stylites, which is a Christian ascetic who stands on a pillar preaching, fasting, & praying. One day a Roman Catholic monk who is clean shaven with a crown hair cut, a finely dressed cowl, & who is the advisor from the Pope to help the Polish-Lithuanians against the Russians, comes across the Russian Starets who tells him to pick up his cross which are contain in a basket. This changes the Roman Catholic monk who then becomes a wandering hermit & when he returns to Rome with ragged clothes & full beard, the Pope almost faints.
There are still Starets in Russia as well in other parts of the world including America, but a Stylite ended in the mid 1400's in Russia. Therefore to join both concepts of Orthodox monasticism in the 1600's is not historically possible but makes a good movie image. To see what comes close to a real Starets see the Russian film Ostrov (The Island).
Summary of 1612
?Reminiscent of Lord of the Rings? ?Sunday HeraldAfter the brutal slaughter of Tsar Boris Godunov and his family, Russia descends into chaos. Guided by faith and mysticism, Andrey, the only witness to the massacre, transforms himself from servant to cavalier and sets off on a quest to save Princess Ksenia, the missing daughter of Godunov. Andrey joins forces with Prince Pozharski, the people?s army leader, and faces down the Polish army in an explosive, blood-soaked battle for Moscow.
Includes Over 45 Minutes of Behind-the-Scenes Bonus Material:
Making-of Featurette, Photo Gallery
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