Summary

Where is cinema?

Round table talk.

Nina Tsyrkun

A rusty nail

Review of TV-series DUDES (Russia).

A novelty on Russian TV — videodiary originated from reality-show is being analysed. Tracing down the genre, substantial, aesthetic and technological resources of the format in question the author argues that it substantially challenges the pompous glamour of major channels.

DUDES, reality-show, TV-series, videodiary, TNT channel

Katerina Tarkhanova

Average temperature

Review of TV-series A COUNTY LEECH (Russia).

A thorough content analysis of medical stories by the example of the last season most highly estimated TV-series A County Leech (Russia 1 channel) is assumed. The nature of their popularity and peculiarities of their comprehension by different constituency segments are specified. Certain conceptual characteristics of this kind of subject matter as far as choice of the protagonist and narration is concerned — that is cumulating one's personal drama, professional activities and multigenre patients' stories are singled out.

A COUNTY LEECH, Russia 1 channel, novel, ideal, subject matter, medical doctor

Olga Ganzhara

Glukhar as the national idea

Review of TV-series GLUKHAR (Russia).

Irina Lyubarskaya

Same old soup just reheated

Review of TV-series PRISON BREAK (Russia).

Creative adaptation of foreign TV-series as an urgent problem of domestic TV is under consideration. Dealing with Prison break series the author dwells on reasons, nature and mechanisms of transformation of American stories when transferred into Russian reality, as well as on typical mistakes made by Russian channels.

PRISON BREAK, analogue, TV-channel, American TV-series

Olga Ganzhara

Fronts of Bykov

Review of TV-series INTERNS (Russia).

Sergei Tsyrkun

Dads and dough

Review of TV-series BARVIKHA (Russia).

Dynamics and up-to-date transformation of Soviet «school film» genre through its ideological and socio-psychological aspects are examined. Uprisal of a new social stratum under contemporary economic and ideological conditions as shown in Barvikha TV-series, exemplified with representatives of two generations, is analysed in historical perspective.

BARVIKHA, school film, generation, adolescent

Grigory Pomerants

In search of Russian mentality

Polemic response towards investigations by Andrei Konchalovsky, devoted to peculiarities of Russian mentality. The author contests Konchalovsky's thesis about one whole homogeneous system of views and beliefs characteristic of the nation. Contradictious arguments found both in various epochs of Russia's history as well as in typology of classical personages of Russian literature are put to use.

Mentality, culture, nation, reforms, literature

Georgy Pusenkov

Children of earthen floor

Sergei Medvedev

Dao of vodka

Anton Dolin

Peacemaker

Portrayal of Apichatpong Weerasethakul

A multidimentional portrayal of the cult Thai filmmaker, the leader of critical and festivals' ratings of the latest three or four years. The Golden Palm of Cannes-2010 winner is challenging as the creator of experimental cinema of his own and the most striking provocative of professional polemics concerning the possibilities of cine-primitive, organic mixture of ideological naivete and intricate aesthetic game, innovations for those chosen and aiming at success with the viewers.

Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Cannes-2010, naivete, primitive, lack of conflict

Sergei Anashkin

Mini/max. Days and deeds of a loner

A detailed aesthetic and ideological inquiry into two documentary films by the noted Chinese filmmaker Wang Bing, whose feature debut Jiabiangou as the bright token of cinematic radicalism evoked enthusiastic response at the Venice Film Festival this year. Through analysis of the helmer's minimalist method the author comes out to understanding major characteristics of traditional Chinese culture and such its notions as author, hero, viewer.

Wang Bing, MAN WITH NO NAME, minimalism, radical humanism

Evgeny Gusyatinsky

Policy without policy

Flaertiana-2010

Summing up the results of the documental cinema festival Flaertiana (Perm'). Intrinsic for documentaries opposition of such categorical dyads as 'truth to life' and 'author's interpretation', 'raw reality' and 'artisation', 'image' and 'a next door man' are investigated. The author considers interrelation and mutual rejection of these and some other fundamentals of creative method both in historical dynamics and through specific examples, focusing on films with profound social message.

Flaertiana, documentaries, author, reality

Sergei Sytchov

Truth about real men

Review of Mika Ronkainen's FREETIME MACHOS (Finland).

Grigory Libergal — Sergei Miroshnichenko:

«Only censorship of quality has effect with us»

Conversed by Sergei Sytchov

Evgeny Ass — Alexei Muratov — Yury Grigorian

Wild field

Moderated by Daniil Dondurei and Nina Zarkhi.

Rem Koolhaas

Space of expulsion

Conversed by Stefan Bergdorf and Bernhard Zand.

Rem Koolhaas

An obsessive compulsion towards the spectacular

Julian Worrall, Erez Golani Solomon

21st Century Tokyo: Architecture as performance

Conversed and commented by W. David Marx.

Vladimir Bokser

Kurginian at the gate

Sociological and culturological analysis of some urgent problems of modernization in Russia. Peculiarities of national mentality and systemic errors of those in power are narrowly investigated. Partially continuation of the discussion, initiated in issue 10 of this year, devoted to the topic «reforms and society», «reforms and person», «reforms and culture».

Power, media, state, society, TV

Maxim Stishov — Dmitry Fiks:

«We are three decades late»

Russian TV-series on crossroad

Conversed by Daniil Dondurei

Natalia Stavrovskaya

Godard 8-0

Jean-Luc Godard

Excerpts from a book and interviews.

Alexandre Lungin, Sergei Osipian

Midday

Yury Solodov

Daddy

That's nothing

Short stories.