Cruelty (Russian: Жестокость, romanized: Zhestokost) is a 1959 Soviet dramatic film directed by Vladimir Skuybin and written by Pavel Nilin.[1][2][a]
Cruelty | |
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Directed by | Vladimir Skuybin |
Written by | Pavel Nilin |
Produced by | Valentin Maslov |
Starring | Georgi Yumatov Boris Andreyev Nikolai Kryuchkov |
Cinematography | Timofey Lebeshev |
Edited by | Lidia Lysenkova |
Music by | Mikhail Meyerovich |
Production company | |
Release date |
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Running time | 92 min. |
Country | Soviet Union |
Language | Russian |
Synopsis
editSet in the vicinity of a small Siberian town, the film centers around a brutal gang led by the character Kostya Vorontsov. The local police, assisted by members of the Komsomol, investigate the operations of the gang and attempt to liquidate them.
In one of the clashes with the bandits, the deputy head of the investigation, Veniamin Malyshev (a Komsomol member of the Civil War) is seriously wounded. In addition, Vorontsov's assistant Lazar Baukin (a former hunter and a soldier), is captured. Having ascertained during the interrogation that the gangster did not intend to help the policemen, the head of the criminal investigation department proposes to shoot the enemy. This is in accordance with the laws of revolutionary times. Suddenly, the wounded Malyshev intervenes, deciding that Baukin is a lost man who can be re-educated.
A complex drama of character unfolds and ends with the suicide of Malyshev, who believes that it is impossible to live with a lie. The young policeman could not stand the contrast between revolutionary ideals and the activities of careerists and demagogues.
Cast
edit- Georgi Yumatov as Malyshev[5]
- Apollon Yachnitsky as Kostya Vorontsov
- Boris Andreyev as Lazar Baukin[6]
- Nikolai Kryuchkov as Yefrem Yefremovich, head of criminal investigation
- Vladimir Andreyev as Yakov Uzelkov
- Anatoly Kubatsky as charioteer
- Nikolay Smorchkov as Tsaritsyn
- Margarita Zhigunova as Julia Maltseva
Release
editIn 1959, the film was watched by 29 million Soviet viewers, placing it 415th in the history of rentals.[7]
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ Жестокость at the Mosfilm
- ^ Раззаков, Федор (September 5, 2017). Свет погасших звезд. Люди, которые всегда с нами. Litres. ISBN 9785425088215 – via Google Books.
- ^ Kulikov, Ivan (6 December 2007). "Подруга госпожи Месть" [Lady Vengeance's Girlfriend]. Film.ru (in Russian).
- ^ Slawinski, Emma (4 October 2008). "Cruelty". Eye for Film.
- ^ "Виктор Мережко: Георгия Юматова считали чужаком в кино". sobesednik.ru.
- ^ Kirill Razlogov. Первый век нашего кино
- ^ "СССР: Самые кассовые фильмы — списки лучших фильмов". КиноПоиск.
External links
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