Subject
"Onegin film arrives in Piter" (fwd)
Date
Body
EDITOR's NOTE. NABOKV-L once again thnaks Alphonse Vinh <Yinshih@aol.com>
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#469, Friday, May 28, 1999
Sankt Peterburgkh Times
ARTS + FEATURES
'Onegin' Breaches Pushkin Citadel in Fine Style
By Barnaby Thompson
As if you didn't know, St. Petersburg is currently somewhat preoccupied with
a certain Alexander Sergeyevich Push kin. Some of the celebrations are
academic, some are genteel; some are outdoor, some are indoor; some are
relaxed, and one or two are even a little glamorous.
Into the latter bracket falls the long-awaited world premiere of Ralph
Fiennes' film, "Onegin." The first official screening of "Onegin" takes place
on Sunday evening, in the presence of Fiennes (who co-produced and took the
role of Yevgeny Onegin himself), Liv Tyler (Tatyana), and Martha Fiennes -
Ralph's sister - who directed the film.
To introduce the film to Russian audiences might seem a pretty brave move.
Any talk about Pushkin to Russians, who are often virulently protective of
their national icons, invariably leads to the dreaded rebuttal: On nash. They
have their own Pushkin films, they have their own unique acting traditions.
Actors, producers, director and organizers of the screening - the British
Council, in this case - must be more than a trifle apprehensive. How will
this English-language "Onegin" be received?
This "Onegin" is a story told in beautiful pictures. A wan and sickly Fiennes
rides in a carriage across the snow, enveloped in furs, as his driver
mercilessly lashes the horses. A troubled, lovesick and limpid Fiennes
wanders the soft-focus streets of St. Petersburg.
Countless magnificent costumes grace Tatyana's naming-day, or the ball in the
film's second half - Prince Nikitin's military wear being a masterful case in
point. The room in which Tatyana chooses to reject Onegin and stay true to
her wedding vows is a white, marbled splendor. It feels as if the screenplay
has been kept deliberately low-key - almost to a fault - so that the viewer
can block out the dialogue (particularly if the guy who did the Russian
voice-over for "Die Hard" has been employed) and feast instead on an array of
memorable images.
Not much of this visual splendor owes anything to St. Petersburg. Films like
"The Russia House" (or even the entertaining tank chase in the 007 flick
"Goldeneye") address and take from the city's landscape far more directly.
Perhaps the shots of skaters on the Neva, to whose banks Onegin has come to
see if he can catch a glimpse of Tatyana - a scenic moment with a nice touch
of infatuation about it - is the most "Petersburgian," (or Peterbourgeois to
stay within the Francophile spirit of the era). It offers that view of the
endless row of delicately tinted palaces, leading from the Hermitage in both
directions.
On the whole, however, what draws one in to "Onegin" is the people, their
eyes, looks, glances, and body language. It is the personal, intimate
elements that best capture what the film is trying to say. One of our first
images of Onegin is at the ballet, in the company of two wonderfully
excruciating fops, retiring early because the poor mite has a headache.
By the time he has implored Tatyana to elope with him, his cheeks haven't got
any rosier, but he has fallen so far that we see a tortured man trapped by
the mistakes of his past, rather than somebody who has belatedly decided that
he actually fancies the girl (or woman, as she has become). In short, a human
being, not a wine-drinking robot.
Fiennes shows an excellent grasp of what his character is all about,
developing him gradually from a waster who would benefit greatly from getting
out in the fresh air more - which he does, to the advantage of his health, if
not his morals - to a man to be pitied, a man who finally acknowledges an
emotion or two and is ironically undone by them. Never a man to be admired,
but one whom you end up rooting for, willing Tatyana to say, "Oh, all right
then," hitch up her skirts and hightail it to somewhere remote - Kingisyepp,
for example - with Onegin.
Tyler, Toby Stephens (Lensky) and Lena Headey (Olga) also hit the mark with
their characters. Not to be outdone by Fiennes' intriguing, shifting
character, Tyler in particular convinces in all of Tatyana's guises: the
idealistic girl ("Free the peasants!"), the composed, assured wife, ("Haven't
we met somewhere, Mr. Onegin?") and particularly in the final, tragic
farewell with the man she still loves.
But there is also an interesting and attractive relationship between Onegin
and Lensky, providing more cheerful moments away from all the psychology and
tragedy - apart from the duel, of course, when blood splatters from Lensky's
head in close-up.
After the premiere, "Onegin" will be on view for the general public for two
months at the Avrora and Leningrad cinemas, and tickets will cost 150 rubles.
A word to the producers: The price puts the film out of range for thousands
of the good folk of St. Petersburg; but it will probably be pirated and on
sale for a quarter of the sum as soon as you have taken off from Pulkovo-2.
So don't worry!
copyright The St. Petersburg Times 1999
-----------------
#469, Friday, May 28, 1999
Sankt Peterburgkh Times
ARTS + FEATURES
'Onegin' Breaches Pushkin Citadel in Fine Style
By Barnaby Thompson
As if you didn't know, St. Petersburg is currently somewhat preoccupied with
a certain Alexander Sergeyevich Push kin. Some of the celebrations are
academic, some are genteel; some are outdoor, some are indoor; some are
relaxed, and one or two are even a little glamorous.
Into the latter bracket falls the long-awaited world premiere of Ralph
Fiennes' film, "Onegin." The first official screening of "Onegin" takes place
on Sunday evening, in the presence of Fiennes (who co-produced and took the
role of Yevgeny Onegin himself), Liv Tyler (Tatyana), and Martha Fiennes -
Ralph's sister - who directed the film.
To introduce the film to Russian audiences might seem a pretty brave move.
Any talk about Pushkin to Russians, who are often virulently protective of
their national icons, invariably leads to the dreaded rebuttal: On nash. They
have their own Pushkin films, they have their own unique acting traditions.
Actors, producers, director and organizers of the screening - the British
Council, in this case - must be more than a trifle apprehensive. How will
this English-language "Onegin" be received?
This "Onegin" is a story told in beautiful pictures. A wan and sickly Fiennes
rides in a carriage across the snow, enveloped in furs, as his driver
mercilessly lashes the horses. A troubled, lovesick and limpid Fiennes
wanders the soft-focus streets of St. Petersburg.
Countless magnificent costumes grace Tatyana's naming-day, or the ball in the
film's second half - Prince Nikitin's military wear being a masterful case in
point. The room in which Tatyana chooses to reject Onegin and stay true to
her wedding vows is a white, marbled splendor. It feels as if the screenplay
has been kept deliberately low-key - almost to a fault - so that the viewer
can block out the dialogue (particularly if the guy who did the Russian
voice-over for "Die Hard" has been employed) and feast instead on an array of
memorable images.
Not much of this visual splendor owes anything to St. Petersburg. Films like
"The Russia House" (or even the entertaining tank chase in the 007 flick
"Goldeneye") address and take from the city's landscape far more directly.
Perhaps the shots of skaters on the Neva, to whose banks Onegin has come to
see if he can catch a glimpse of Tatyana - a scenic moment with a nice touch
of infatuation about it - is the most "Petersburgian," (or Peterbourgeois to
stay within the Francophile spirit of the era). It offers that view of the
endless row of delicately tinted palaces, leading from the Hermitage in both
directions.
On the whole, however, what draws one in to "Onegin" is the people, their
eyes, looks, glances, and body language. It is the personal, intimate
elements that best capture what the film is trying to say. One of our first
images of Onegin is at the ballet, in the company of two wonderfully
excruciating fops, retiring early because the poor mite has a headache.
By the time he has implored Tatyana to elope with him, his cheeks haven't got
any rosier, but he has fallen so far that we see a tortured man trapped by
the mistakes of his past, rather than somebody who has belatedly decided that
he actually fancies the girl (or woman, as she has become). In short, a human
being, not a wine-drinking robot.
Fiennes shows an excellent grasp of what his character is all about,
developing him gradually from a waster who would benefit greatly from getting
out in the fresh air more - which he does, to the advantage of his health, if
not his morals - to a man to be pitied, a man who finally acknowledges an
emotion or two and is ironically undone by them. Never a man to be admired,
but one whom you end up rooting for, willing Tatyana to say, "Oh, all right
then," hitch up her skirts and hightail it to somewhere remote - Kingisyepp,
for example - with Onegin.
Tyler, Toby Stephens (Lensky) and Lena Headey (Olga) also hit the mark with
their characters. Not to be outdone by Fiennes' intriguing, shifting
character, Tyler in particular convinces in all of Tatyana's guises: the
idealistic girl ("Free the peasants!"), the composed, assured wife, ("Haven't
we met somewhere, Mr. Onegin?") and particularly in the final, tragic
farewell with the man she still loves.
But there is also an interesting and attractive relationship between Onegin
and Lensky, providing more cheerful moments away from all the psychology and
tragedy - apart from the duel, of course, when blood splatters from Lensky's
head in close-up.
After the premiere, "Onegin" will be on view for the general public for two
months at the Avrora and Leningrad cinemas, and tickets will cost 150 rubles.
A word to the producers: The price puts the film out of range for thousands
of the good folk of St. Petersburg; but it will probably be pirated and on
sale for a quarter of the sum as soon as you have taken off from Pulkovo-2.
So don't worry!
copyright The St. Petersburg Times 1999