Photo by Nora Jane
Fishing for compliments in Venice
Published 05 September, 2009, 17:01
“CRAWFISHLIKE”… It’s not a badly-cooked dish on the menu of a fish 'n' chip restaurant but the ironic title of a Russian movie which has just premiered at one of the world’s most prestigious film festivals in Venice.
Here’s the story: Mikhail Mikhailovich conforms to the typical image of an average Russian bureaucrat. He has it all: family, a mistress, money and power. His only true passion, though, is buying shoes… So when MM meets a pretty sales girl, Nastya, the crooked official faces a surreal challenge. His long-awaited dream to escape the routine and monotonous prison of everyday life seems to be just round the corner…
The film’s director, Ilya Demichev, calls “CRAWFISHLIKE” a “drama of lost expectations.” Meanwhile Demichev’s own cinematic career seems to be gaining momentum day by day.
The 31-year old aspiring artist has tried his hand at directing movies for the first time. He owns a chain of restaurants and writes poetry and scripts. The businessman-turned-director told RT he became a filmmaker quite by chance.
“It all started with the script of ‘CRAWFISHLIKE’ which I wrote and sold. I wasn’t going to direct the film. But when producers started choosing professional directors, at some point they decided that it’s me who should be making this film, because I know the story like no one else.”
On set of "CRAWFISHLIKE". Photo by Nora Jane
Demichev recalls that he immediately felt at ease sitting in director’s chair. “Of course, in the beginning there was a feeling of anxiety, but the more we worked, the more confidence I gained.”
And according to film critics, it shows. Demichev’s drama has been described as touching and nostalgic and, despite a lack of experience, even mature.
Shooting lasted only 42 days with the film’s budget $2.5 million. “It’s not a small budget for Russia,” says the businessman. “Many other Russian films were made with less money.”
The art-house production is vying for the prestigious “Lion of the Future” award for best Debut Film at the Venice Film Festival.
 Ilya Demichev with the crew. Photo by Nora Jane |
“I feared many things in the film would be ‘lost in translation’ – some humor, the play on words, metaphors, etc. But the subtitles in Italian have exceeded my expectations. Italian critics and the public reacted to the film so energetically that, audience-wise, there was no difference at all in Russia and Italy. The reaction was identical: People were laughing at the same things.”
- Have you ever eaten lobsters?
– No. What do they look like?
– They're like crawfish, only bigger.
Russian and European audiences will have to watch “CRAWFISHLIKE” to the end to get the film’s message.
Valeria Paikova, RT
discuss it
