IMDb >
Russkiy kovcheg (2002)
Watch It
Buy it at Amazon
Rent it at Blockbuster.com
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
BETA
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotesOverview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduleAwards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage boardPlot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotesFun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQOther Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDeskPromotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo galleryExternal Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsRusskiy kovcheg (2002) More at IMDbPro »
| Videos (see all 3 NEW) |
Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
8 November 2002 (Italy) moreTagline:
2000 cast members, 3 orchestras, 33 rooms, 300 years, ALL IN ONE TAKE morePlot:
A 19th century French aristocrat, notorious for his scathing memoirs about life in Russia, travels through the Russian State Hermitage Museum and encounters historical figures from the last 200+ years. full summary | full synopsisAwards:
9 wins & 9 nominations moreNewsDesk:
Video Distributor Sets Identical Prices for DVDs and Cassettes(From Studio Briefing - Film News. 28 July 2003)
User Comments:
the anti-Eisenstein more (146 total)Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Sergei Dontsov | ... | The Stranger (The Marquis de Custine) (as Sergei Dreiden) | |
| Mariya Kuznetsova | ... | Catherine The Great | |
| Leonid Mozgovoy | ... | The Spy | |
| Mikhail Piotrovsky | ... | Himself (Hermitage Director) | |
| David Giorgobiani | ... | Orbeli | |
| Aleksandr Chaban | ... | Boris Piotrovsky | |
| Lev Yeliseyev | ... | Himself | |
| Oleg Khmelnitsky | ... | Himself | |
| Alla Osipenko | ... | Herself | |
| Artyom Strelnikov | ... | Talented Boy | |
| Tamara Kurenkova | ... | Herself (Blind Woman) | |
| Maksim Sergeyev | ... | Peter the Great | |
| Natalya Nikulenko | ... | Catherine the Great | |
| Yelena Rufanova | ... | First Lady | |
| Yelena Spiridonova | ... | Second Lady |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Русский ковчег (Russia)Russian Ark (International: English title)
Russian Ark - Eine einzigartige Zeitreise durch die Eremitage (Germany)
more
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
99 minLanguage:
RussianColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 moreSound Mix:
Dolby DigitalCertification:
Taiwan:GP | Italy:T | Brazil:Livre | France:U | New Zealand:PG | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:U | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Singapore:PG | Chile:TE | Canada:GFun Stuff
Trivia:
The snowy courtyard that Catherine II walked through in the movie was covered and full of tropical plants and animals from around the world when Catherine II lived there. This second floor courtyard is now filled with statues and lilac bushes. moreSoundtrack:
Aria moreFAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (146 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Russkiy kovcheg (2002) moreRecommendations
If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
Show more recommendations
|
|
|
|
|
| Neskolko dney iz zhizni I.I. Oblomova | Parajanov: The Last Spring | La tregua | Black Robe | Door Out of the Dark |
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Drama section | IMDb Russia section |
| Add this title to MyMovies |




In the history of cinema, it is the Russians who are generally credited with elevating film editing to a modern art form. It is ironic, and strangely fitting, therefore, that it should be the Russians who, almost a full century later, have now produced the first full-length feature film ever to be composed of a single unedited shot running uninterrupted from first moment to last (Hitchcock came close with `Rope,' but he did include a few `cuts' in the course of the film). Even Sergei Eisenstein, who, in films like `Potemkin' and `Ten Days That Shook the World' spent his career developing and demonstrating the power of editing, would, I dare say, be impressed by `Russian Ark,' a film every bit as innovative and challenging as those earlier seminal works.
For their bravura, awe-inspiring cinematic tour-de-force, director Alexander Sokurov and cinematographer Tilman Buttner take us into the famed Hermitage Museum and Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, providing us with a grand tour not only of the opulent rooms and famous artwork contained therein, but of 300 years of Russian history as well, as various vignettes involving famous people (from Peter and Catherine the Great to Nicholas and Alexandra) and events are played out within the glorious gilded walls.
`Russian Ark' is a bold and audacious project that is the cinematic equivalent of a breathlessly performed high wire juggling act. We know that one false move on the part of the actors or the cameraman, one missed cue or accident of fate could bring the whole delicately poised enterprise crashing down around them. How often, one wonders, did a perfectionist like Sukorov have to resist the temptation to yell `Cut!' to his actors and crew? It's truly amazing to see just how beautifully planned and flawlessly executed the final product turns out to be, especially the ball sequence at the end which features hundreds of dancers and spectators who are set in beautifully choreographed and constantly whirling motion. What's most remarkable is how much of a participant the camera itself is in the proceedings. Not content to stand idly by and observe the scene like some passive onlooker, the camera moves right into the center of the action, gliding in and out of the crowds with utmost grace and precision. Visually, the film is stunning, with exquisite costumes and furnishings as far as the eye can see. Indeed, `Russian Ark' is, among other things, a veritable feast for the eyes, the likes of which we have rarely seen on film before.
`Russian Ark' does have something of a `plot,' involving a narrator whom we never see, a 21st Century filmmaker we assume it's Sukorov himself - who's found himself inexplicably caught in some type of time warp and magically transported to this strange spectral world. There's also a bizarre European `ghost' figure from the unspecified past who comments - and occasionally attempts to intrude on the actions taking place around him. But these two characters are of far less interest to the audience than the aural and visual delights of the film itself.
`Russian Ark' is a wonder to behold, for it is much more than just an `exercise,' a `gimmick,' or even an `antithesis' to Eisenstein; it is a vibrant work of art that challenges the limits of its medium and reminds us of just what it is about movies that we love so much.