Autumn Marathon

Rating:
Summary: Great comedy!
Review: Definitely, one of the best movies (yeah, you can read the previous review - I've no idea what the fellow is talking about; you should to see the movie instead). Of course, it must be seen in Russian, subtitles NEVER give you a clue what's going on. Actually, I read a lot of books translated from Russian into English - so pathetic... The same for movies.
This is a comedy (THE comedy) about our life. Don't expect "sights of Leningrad".

Rating:
Summary: Good movie, good actors
Review: I had a chance to see this movie again. It reminded me of my living in Russia. Actually, I believe the situaltion shown is common. A man can't decide where to go; he wants to look good in people eyes, be good to everyone, but sometimes it is difficult to achieve.

Rating:
Summary: Yawn marathon
Review: I would have thought a good reason to see AUTUMN MARATHON (1979) is to get a glimpse of Leningrad (present day St. Petersburg) before the dissolution of the Soviet Union. St. Petersburg was then, and is, a lovely, pastel-colored city of canals and grand buildings.

Andrei Buzykin (Oleg Bassilashvili) is a university English professor, translator, and author with women problems. After twenty-some years of marriage, he no longer dotes on his wife, Nina. He does adore his young mistress, Alla, but she wants a permanent relationship and is driven crazy by the alarm on Andrei's watch which spurs him off to other commitments. Buzykin also loves his daughter, Lena, but she's becoming more distant as her own marriage evolves. And if all this isn't enough, Andrei's publisher wants his next book sooner than later, and Andrei spends too much of his free time helping a visiting Danish scholar translate Dostoevsky and advising a translator colleague on the writing of her own book. Buzykin, at 45, is steering towards male menopause. Perhaps he should emulate another acquaintance, who chills out by drinking vodka and gathering wild mushrooms in the forest.

The reputed excellence of AUTUMN MARATHON is that it depicts the ordinariness and subtle absurdities of everyday life. However, if Buzykin's existence sounds mundane, believe me, it visually is; I don't need a bigger dose of ordinary than what is provided by my own daily regimen, starting with looking in the mirror after I get up in the morning.

My wife, who tossed in the proverbial towel two-thirds into the film's run time, quipped that it lacked "pizzazz" and "took too long to get anywhere". However, I'm made of sterner stuff. But, while Buzykin gained my sympathy in a distant sort of way, I couldn't help but think that the film might have been improved with a tweaked script, tighter editing, and Jack Lemmon in the lead.

And Leningrad? The director and Mosfilm made almost no effort to showcase the city. There was no obligation to do so, of course, and I concede that my criticism on this point is unfair. But if you're filming in the Cold War era and plan on releasing the finished product to Western audiences (where it proved award-winning, for reasons that escape me), then why not give the city a PR boost? Even a quick jog past the fountains in the rear of Peterhof or across the facade of the Hermitage would have helped immeasurably.

Rating:
Summary: Good (but not in Spanish audio track)
Review: It is funny indeed. However, the Spanish audio track is no good, as they put the Spanish audio directly on top of the Russian audio, so you hear both, and it isn't dubbed -- one guy reads all the Spanish translation (so there is never any female voices in Spanish).

Rating:
Summary: Good movie, good actors
Review: This is the movie about a man of thinks of himself as a victim of circumstances, but in fact his will is just not strong enough. He cannot make his own choise, and when the destiny decides for him - it turnes out to be the worst way out of the situation. It's a very thought-provoking film and it has a deep pshycological problem. A little bit depressing, though. But still good.