Nochnoi Dozor (Night Watch) (2005)

RUSSIA --- fantasy

Dir: Timur Bekamambetov

“Sorcerers in Moscow . . . silly.” Anton Gorodestsky


The anemic Russian cinema movement has returned, with a bang. "Nochoi Dozor" (or Night Watch) was the top grossing film in Russia in 2004, making it the first blockbuster in post Soviet Union Russia. When I first read about Night Watch in the papers glaring at the riveting movie poster, I was intrigued. I was even more intrigued when I found out it was the first of a trilogy. I didn’t get a chance to see it in its limited U.S. release, so I had to wait for the DVD. The wait was well worth it. I was at once astounded at not only its unique premise, but as a film, in its innovative visual amalgam of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, the “Blade” films, with a little bit of the vibe of “Underworld” and “Ghostbusters” thrown in for good measure. I finished the movie and I wanted more from this world. I immediately went scouring the net for info on who came up with this terrific cinematic wonder.

Nochnoi Dozor is definitely no Ptushko or Tarkovsky film. Director Timur Bekamambetov gives an adrenaline shot to this film in every frame with stunning visual effects that are not used like condiments on a bland burger like some of Hollywood’s films, but are used to tell the story. The 1998 novel, by science fiction/fantasy author Sergey Lukyanenko, is slightly different from the fim in story structure. The 2004 film unweaves the existence of two powerful forces among us; the “Others”. One is light and the other is dark. They control the day and the night. But many years ago, they came to a truce. Geser (according to the author is named after Gesser the Tibetan hero of legend), the lord of light, and Zavulon, the general of darkness agree to never give any new “Others” the right to freewill – to be what they want. Be that good, or evil. Hmmm, yes, I detect some post communist controlled USSR inspiration there.

They also set up two separate mystical factions that exist in the world, still until today, complete with rules. Basically they were set up to make sure neither breaks the truce. The light forces became known as the Night Watch, while the dark became Day Watch. Our hero in the story is Anton Gorodetsky, who in the film we see him try to win his ex-lover back through the assistance of a witch. The witch is an Other and has just broken a rule of the Nightwatch. But in the process, we find out Anton happens to be an Other. He becomes a Light Mage, as he is a magician.

Fast forward years later, we find that Anton is indeed working for the Night Watch, and his latest mission is to find a vampire who has broken the truce. A vampire has bitten a woman, turning her into one of them. But she must feed, and the vampire has her lure a young boy for her consumption. Anton seeks the assistance of his neighbors who happen to be vampires too. He must think and behave like a vampire in order to find and track down the boy. This is considered to be field work by the Night Watch, and Anton dislikes it. In the subway, Anton runs into another problem; a woman he believes is an Other, but he lets it go in order to complete his current mission with the boy. Upon finding the vampire, his attempt to apprehend the vampires goes sideways as one of them is killed and the chick escapes. This doesn’t make things good for the truce any better, on either side. Anton returns to Geser mortally wounded and on top of this, Geser takes a look into Anton’s mind finding the woman on the train. He discovers that this woman is about to bring about the apocalypse. Meanwhile, Zavulon is designing an elaborate plot to take advantage of an ancient prophecy that tells of a Great One, that will choose to become an Other that will either destroy the light within or battle the surrounding darkness. It is that choice that will decide the fate of the world.

The film is intriguing with its plot, and it’s at once jaw-dropping to watch the special effects utilized to the hilt. Timur Bekamambetov has created an ultra-slick and highly stylized "New Weird" film. I can watch the movie over and over. What’s even more exciting is that Fox Searchlight funneled (of course) an American appeasing version, and that there is an original Russian cut out there to be had. KOOL! I also have to track down the Region 0 PAL 3-discer set available, and maybe even the novel at some point. This website is an English ready fan site and is pretty informative of the Night Watch saga: http://www.lightordark.com/ A sequel was made, but as of this writing, the trilogy is incomplete.

Сталкер (Stalker) (1979)

RUSSIA --- science fiction

Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1979 science fiction film, “Stalker”, is based on a novella called “Roadside Picnic” written by sci-fi Russian novelists Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. The original story deals with aliens having visited earth and left behind various equipment and such of advanced technological nature. The places these things reside in have become danger zones, as some are affected by the alien’s visitation. People have begun straggling around the areas around the “Zone” and some venture within illegally to recover these alien artifacts; they are called “Stalkers”. One in particular is called the “golden sphere”, which is rumored to be able to grant anyone his or her greatest desires.

The film adaptation changes things a little, as it follows three men in search of a room that will grant their greatest wishes. They are led by a “stalker”, one who illegally traverses the “Zone” on a regular basis and hires himself out as an escort to the “room”. He tries to provide for his wife and child named Monkey who has no legs. We meet the “stalker” in his humble abode with his wife and child as he prepares yet another trip into the “Zone”. He is hired by a scientist and a writer to journey into the “Zone” in search of the room, meeting them in a bar and from there they evade the police constantly patrolling the vicinity around the “Zone. After finally crossing into the “Zone”, the “stalker” warns them to be careful and to respect the It, for It can kill them. He throws out metallic nuts to test areas for safety on their journey, when they finally do reach the room the scientist and the writer begin to disbelieve in its power to grant anyone anything, and the scientist reveals he plans to destroy it with a bomb for the simple logic that if it can will anyone their greatest desires, then in the wrong hands it would be detrimental to all of mankind. The writer agrees with the scientists, but the “stalker” tries to stop them, for the “Zone” and the room itself are literally all he has in the world to live for. It is his livelihood. In the end, they decide to leave it alone.

Like any Tarkovsky film, this is a very long drawn out sci-fi epic, not suited for impatient audiences. The film remains a prophetic sci-fi cautionary tale for Russian society, as it predates the Chernobyl disaster by about seven years. Tarkovsky is a master craftsman of cinema, as he doesn’t just make films, he makes thought-provoking works of art. The first time it was filmed the original negatives were destroyed in a lab, so the whole film was shot all over again. It features amazing poetic fluid shots of desolate landscapes, the most unsanitary water ever to be photographed, and gritty sepia-toned passes into the post-apocalyptic world outside of the “Zone”. He captures a distant life of contemporary society with songs like “Ode to Joy” billowing from a passing train.

There aren’t actually any conclusive science fiction ideas in the film like alien visitors, but you are left, as the director wants to leave you, questioning whether it was ever real or not. Andrei Tarkovsky had a recurring theme in his films that show men searching for God or meaning of life. With that rationale, you can see perhaps what his message with this film was. As I look at it, it is layered to mean many things to many different people, but the simplest approach is to see the “stalker” as a believer in faith, and the writer and scientist as many of us in society are cruel realists too much in this world. As the ending may seem to prove, even a little beacon of hope remains vitally important.

Вий (Viy: Spirit of Evil) (1967)

RUSSIA --- horror

Dir: Georgi Kropachyov, Konstantin Yershov, Alexander Ptushko

"And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief." King James Bible - MARK 9: 24

Some stories never go out of style. Some tales can be relevant for ages. Some legends just stay with us. It may be marked by some inkling of truth and a very powerful message about the human condition. Faith will always be a part of the human condition, and the struggle between good and evil isn't going anywhere anytime soon.



The film Viy is about this very matter, faith and the struggle between good and evil and what happens when one's faith is put to the test. Based on an 1835 Ukranian folk tale published as a short story by Nikolai Gogol, the film tales the story of a young priest named Khoma Brutus (translated Thomas Brutus), who is on leave from seminary. He and some other students all leave in a big group to go out into the villages and return to their respective homes, but three get separated. So Khoma, Khaliava, and Gorobets soon find themselves out in the countryside alone, when they come across an isolated farmhouse. They go there to seek shelter for the night, when a reluctant old woman puts them up for a night. She then separates them to different sleeping areas, and leaves Khoma in the barn. Later that night, the old woman goes into the barn awakening him, and at first Khoma thinks the old woman is just attempting to seduce him, that is until he sees that something is far more wrong with her than sexual advances. She wants to get on his back and ride him like a beast of burden, which eventually through some enchantment, she does. The witch rides Khoma all over the countryside even flying above the ground, and when he is released from her spell, he beats her, only to witness her transformation into a beautiful young woman. Startled, he flees for his life, and returns to the Monastery.

Upon arrival, Khoma is soon told by the dean that the daughter of a rich Cossack has returned home beaten near to death, and is requesting for Khoma specifically to perform a vigil over her corpse for three nights after she dies. A bunch of cossacks are there to escort him, and to make sure he arrives in the village and does as promised, all Khoma wants is to go home. A short stop over at an inn with his escorts gets him drunk enough to brave the ride into the village. By the time they arrive, they learn the young woman has died. Khoma visits her the next day and her father begins to question him and his association with his daughter. Khoma is told, per her request to pray for her salvation for three nights and he will be richly rewarded. That day, they lay her body in an open coffin in a dank empty church, where he is to go and pray for her. The local Cossacks begin to tell Khoma of a huntsman who was fell in love with the girl. They tell a tale that sounds all too familiar to Khoma, about her riding on the huntsman's back. That night they lock Khoma in the church with the body, and as they say, the horror begins.

Khoma's first night is spent in fervent prayer, as he sets up candles around the church, with peering Rublev-esque icon paintings surrounding him. This doesn't stop the body of the woman to be creep out of her open coffin, as she heads to Khoma. Khoma draws a chalk circle around him and again prays for the lord's holy protection from such a clearly demonic spirit of evil. The witch disappears when the cock crows. Khoma does indeed survive his first night in the chamber, but after some borsch for breakfast and questioning from the village men about his night, he's reluctant to return with getting drunk on some vodka. Night two, the witch takes flight in her coffin and begins once again to break Khoma's faithful circle. She fails again, but not before casting a spell on Khoma that turns his hair white as snow. That day Khoma has pretty much lost it, as he takes to drink and dance. He goes to the rich cossack begging him for release from his duties. The cossack promises him one thousand lashes instead of one thousand pieces of gold if he fails to pray for his daughter. Khoma tries to flee for fear that he may not survive his final night. He may not have been wrong in that, as his third and final night turns out to be his most terrifying.

"Viy" is a witty and simplistic horror film that weaves its tale with simple suspense and a minimalist charming style. The film has a very gothic Hammer Studios-esque veneer. The filmmakers utilize very practical in-camera special effects. The gloomy but crisp analagous cinematography adds to set pieces, the actors all play their parts without a hitch, and the imagery of barnyard animals in all their noisy glory throughout the film lends to the toning down of the horror and suspense. What is "Viy" really trying to say? I believe it is about faith. The fact that this character is named Thomas can not be a coincidence, as we all know that the disciple/ apostle Thomas was remembered as being the one who doubted the appearance of the resurrected Jesus. The very idea that the town knows full well of this witch, and puts the student priest in the thick of danger is a testament of our own walks in faith. Notice the church was dank and desolate with cold candles, gloomy paintings of the dead saints, and no sign of any having been there for worship. The church was dead and Khoma's faith may have been as well. Whether Gogol was making a statement about the Russian church in his times, is up to the reader. This is a rare horror film from the once fully communist U.S.S.R., who sternly frowned upon such stories and this one actually marks the very first Russian horror film. The filmmakers were able to push it through because of its humourous take on the folktale and legendary Russian fantasy director, Alexander Ptushko,  I'm sure put his visionary stamp on it besides contributing to the screenplay.

Solyaris (Solaris) (1972)

RUSSIA --- science fiction

Dir: Andrei Tarkovsky

Fifty years ago, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was the first man to reach earth's orbit. Prior to that, in 1957, the Soviets launched the Sputnik satellite, sparking an intercontinental space race. However, the mysteries of space are still veiled by the seemingly endless fabric of the universe. No matter how far we go, we will still have to face the inner depths of the human soul. I believe this is the message of Andrei Tarkovsky's "Solaris". It seemed only fitting to explore this filmmaker's popular sci-fi thesis on the human conscience what can happen when those deepest thoughts and memories manifest themselves.

Based on reknown Polish sci-fi novelist Stanisław Lem's 1961 novel (coincidentally the same year Gagarin took to the stars) of the same name, "Solaris", opens on a shot of running stream of water, with flowing green grass; a very familiar signature Tarkovsky shot. We see research psychologist Kris Kelvin looking on the beauty of nature longingly. We're then introduced to his father and a vistor named Burton who has a young boy in tow. It's clear Burton and his father are former colleagues, and it's revealed Kris is about to take a voyage into outerspace himself. Burton has brought with him footage of some kind of scientific council debriefing, where we see a much younger Burton being questioned about his own voyage to an aquatic planet called Solaris. As Kris and his family watch the investigative proceedings, Burton looks on with disdain. Kris comments that the beareaucracy of the council has not changed. On the footage, the younger Burton describes an alien lifeform took shape from the planet's waters, attempting to become humanoid in appearance. It's then revealed later that his own mission is to check in on the scientists. Kris discusses the politics of space exploration with Burton, basically dengrating it to daydreaming. He tells Burton he will just as soon destroy the oceanic surface of Solaris than to continue fruitless research. Burton insists there is more going on there than they have knowledge of, possibly extraterrestial life. After he leaves in a fit of contempt, he calls Kris on a videophone from his car to warn him of what can happen out there, and that he should not think himself mad. With that, Kris does leave for the toroidal shaped space station orbiting Solaris.

Kris arrives with no welcoming party at all, and is left to seek out the remaining researchers. He gets to Snaut, who is surprised to see him and standoffish. When questioned on the other researchers, Snaut reveals Santorious is a hermit and Gibarian has committed suicide. Snaut tells Kris to return in the morning, but to not let anything he sees bother him. Upon departing Snaut, Kris notices he's not alone, as he sees someone in his quarters, besides the fact that it appears someone else is around on the station. He finds Gibarian's room, where he notices on the door a child's crayon drawing with the backwards notation for the russian word for man. He gets inside and a note is left for him on a screen, from Gibarian. It's a recorded video message with Gibarian telling Kris something similar to Burton's warning, about keeping his sanity. While watching this, Kris hears someone at the door, we instantly get that foreboding clue that all is not right in this space station.

Kris eventually seeks out Santorious (played by director pet Anatoly Solonitsyn), who is secluding himself in his room, even reluctant to talk to Kris. It's also clear he too has someone in his room. When he returns to Gibarian's room to finish watching the message, he sees a girl in the background of his recorded message. This same girl appears in the corridor in a turquoise dress and leads Kris to a freezer room where Gibarian's body is on ice. Exhausted, and probably quite perplexed at what is going on, Kris dozes off to sleep in his quarters. He does, however, awaken to the appearance of his dead wife Hari. We also begin to notice the oceans of Solaris are in movement, possibly over the psychological formations of new beings. She acts as if nothing is unordinary, and Kris quickly devises a plan to get rid of the shape by rocketing her off the station. This however fails.

When she does return, Dr. Snaut gives Kris a little advice about the very corporeal apparitions, and that the oceans of Solaris have the capacity to tap into their memories to create these shapes. His warning, however, is to not become too attached, because "they" can never leave Solaris. Hari however is like attached to Kris, as evidence when he tries to leave her in his chambers alone, she busts through the metal door even cutting herself up to shreds to do so. Of course, she heals almost instantly. Toward the end of the film, the doctors have a sort of meeting  about what to do, involving a brain probe into Kris' mind to expell Hari, but it too fails. It fails because as the doctors begin to notice, she has not only come into being more and more like Hari, but a new creation capable of her own decisions and free will. She too realizes this, and ultimately tries to rid herself of the guilt by drinking liquid oxygen. Interestingly, she is wearing a turquiose dress similar to the girl that lead Kris to Gibarian's body. Expectedly, she becomes resurrected. The ending is very ambiguous as Dr. Kelvin decides to leave and return home. We see him home, but this too is out of place from when we saw it in the beginning of the film, leaving us to believe many interpretations.

Tarkovsky's "Solaris" is one of the great science fiction films of our time. Wrongfully termed "A Russian 2001", the film didn't quite hit international audiences like Kubrick's film. There is no technical innovations or fear of technology, but like all of Tarkovsky's films, is about our human soul. To use the old axiom used by "Buckaroo Banzai", "No matter where go, there you are". The idea of sentient planets was not created solely by Lem. From a 1928 Arthur Conan Doyle story "When the World Screamed" to the recent James Cameron film "Avatar", the idea has never gone out of style. Many ecologists will argue that the Earth, in some manner, is a living being.

For anyone familiar with the cinematic work of Soviet filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, it should come as no surprise "Solaris" is a slow-burner. The film almost operates on the level of a futuristic detective film, or having inklings to a mystery that builds and builds with choppy character depth and layered moody early electronic score. "Solaris" is a great poetic essay into the human soul, and that we are never really alone in our own minds. The people we know and love shape our conscious as well over time, and cannot escape our lives. This is not the kind of film you get up in the middle of and nuke some popcorn, it demands your complete and undivided attention.