Movie night (age-restricted): "Checkist" ("Чекист")
Made in 1992 (during the era of Glasnost) this full-screen movie with English subtitles is re-enacting some of Russia's less known and less publicized (especially now) history pages
In my next letter, I would like to provide you with some comments that I have received on my previous post (‘How many people support Russia more than Ukraine now?’). These were very polarized, some constructive, some emotional - from both sides of the story: from those who lost/suffered so much in Ukraine and those who lost/suffered so much here in Canada in the past year.
As a background to some of those comments, which, in fact, I was expecting, I prepared a number of films, very good films, to watch alone or with family, mostly made in Russia (you know, Russian cinematography has been traditional very good) and with English subtitles - so that anyone can appreciate them as well as the complex Russian culture, history and mindset.
I hope you will enjoy them, whether you are on the “this” or “that side” of the conflict.
Please do not hesitate to share your comments, corrections, questions - below or in private by email (dg AT ivim.ca). I will try to address all of them - in private or via newsletter.
***
Made in 1992, this movie is re-enacting Russia's CheKa ‘ЧК’ program, predecessor of NKVD and KGB, that executed anyone who was suspected of being an enemy of the communist, in the early years of that USSR that was created following the ‘Great October Socialist Revolution’ in 1917. The movie is made, with very good actors. Parental discretion is advised though.
It would only in those years - during the era of Glasnost’ (literally Openness, Transparency, Truth and Reconciliation, which was introduced in USSR by Gorbachev in 1985, eventually leading to the collapse of USSR in 1992, and which Putin and his supporters cannot forgive Gorbachev for and will never allow to happen again) - that a movie like this one could have been made in USSR/Russia.
Coincidentally, it was also in that time when I studied in Kyiv Natural Science Lyceum No. 145 and then in Moscow Institute of Physics and technology (MIPT), from both of which I made many life-long friends, with several of whom I’m still in contact, and can share with later their thoughts on the War..