OLIGARKH
(U.S. title: TYCOON)
(a film review by Mark R. Leeper)
CAPSULE: In the newly capitalist Russia a shady
tycoon is murdered. We see his rise to power
and the drama set in motion by his murder.
OLIGARKH is based on a real person, Boris
Berezovsky, and the story of his rise to power
is told intriguingly. This film has been called
Russia's GODFATHER, and I can well believe it.
This is definitely a compelling film. Rating:
9 (0 to 10), +3 (-4 to +4)
OLIGARKH is an adaptation of the novel BOLSHAYA PAIKA (The Big Slice) by Yuly Dubov. The main character was based on the real life shady industrial giant Boris Berezovsky, who has been called "The Godfather of the Kremlin." "This individual had risen out of nowhere to become the richest businessman in Russia and one of the most powerful individuals in the country," Paul Klebnikov writes of Berezovsky in Forbes magazine.
This Russian film, OLIGARKH, shows us a large piece of recent history in the former Soviet Union. At the same time, even in America it plays as a dark political and economic thriller that is comparable in style and strength to THE GODFATHER (or at least of ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA). As the film opens, Platon Makovski is murdered. He was the wealthiest Russian industrialist and one hated by the Russian public. The film moves back and forth in time. The flash-forwards show the next few days as the murder is investigated by police. In the flash- backs we see how Platon Makovski and a small group of his friends moved up the financial ladder to being fabulously wealthy. Platon, with the looks of a movie star, is an amazingly bright wheeler-dealer. His business success, with his enemy more the government than it is competition, is based on his doing the unexpected. He finds clever ways around the laws while keeping his business looking legal. He is a sort of financial anti-hero. The laws he breaks are holdovers from a discredited system and seem absurd, and his successes really seem some good for the country, putting technology in the hands of the people.
One deal has him giving the public an opportunity to trade brooms for cars. Another has them exporting cars only to be re- imported so that he can sell them to the public at a lower price. We get a view of recent Russian history and how it and success affected this small gang of friends. In the flash- forwards we see the investigation of the murder and the dark drama that follows building toward its explosive denouement. Each sequence, flash-back or flash-forward, is titled where it placed in time relative to Platon's death, creating tension to see just what happened and where the chips will fall. Almost like in INTOLERANCE, we see two story lines, each moving toward its most dramatic moment.
I saw this film at a film festival and did not know what to expect. What I found was an audience surprisingly packed with people speaking Russian and apparently excitedly looking forward to the film with great anticipation. The film meant nothing to me at the time, but apparently the Russians knew either of the film or at least that it was a film based on the notorious Berezovsky. Watching the film they found a great deal of the dialog very witty, though much of the humor was not conveyed in the subtitles. Still, it is a good story and one that I think will be of interest in this country.
The Russian title of this film is OLIGARKH, but the American
title TYCOON seems equally appropriate. This is the most
intriguing Russian film I can remember seeing and one I hope
will be released in this country. I rate OLIGARKH a 9 on the 0
to 10 scale and a +3 on the -4 to +4 scale.
Mark R. Leeper
mleeper@optonline.net
Copyright 2003 Mark R. Leeper
========== X-RAMR-ID: 34230 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 846583 X-RT-TitleID: 10002419 X-RT-AuthorID: 1309 X-RT-RatingText: 9/10
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