|
Black LambFull-length feature film Production company: Narodnoe Kino Film Studio |
Synopsis
The family of a shepherd from the Caucuses inherits a car-wash in Moscow. From the far-away pastures they come to the capital and find themselves in an entirely different world with different values. Naive, trustful and eager to make new friends they are harshly rejected by the locals, who see them as aliens, with their sheep, their customs, and their reverence to the head of the family, the Grandfather, who makes an almost mythological figure.
The family of the newcomers experiences a number of difficulties. They come to conflicts with raiders, who want to take away their inheritance, the car-wash. They work hard on making friends with the keeper of the property, who is greatly upset by the nationality, appearance, and manners of the new owners. The story develops as a chain of funny adventures. The son of the shepherd falls passionately in love with a girl who is an “alien” too, a migrant worker from the Ukraine. The granddaughters of the old shepherd, who do their best to help the family, often end up in scrapes, sometimes funny or absurd, sometimes dangerous.
And only the weird black ram, that seems to appear out of the blue, unites everything as a generalizing metaphor. The ram embodies the attempts to cross the mental gap between Russia and the Caucuses, to overcome the mutual mistrust and hatred that divide the peoples.
Cast
Nicolay Fedorovich (keeper) | Vladimir Ilyin | |
Liparit (old shepherd) | Elgudzha Burduly | |
Petros (son of Liparit) | Karen Badalov | |
Anush (granddaughter of Liparit) | Alyona Stebunova | |
Arpik (granddaughter of Liparit) | Liza Podolsky | |
Vera (fiancee of Petros) | Olga Beshulya | |
Yura (municipal clerk) | Boris Kamorzin | |
Kirill (raider) | Aleksey Barabash | |
Jeep driver | Aleksey Kravchenko | |
Sanitary officer | Daniil Spivakovsky | |
Misha (young cop) | Boris Korchevnikov | |
Cop (in car) | Aleksander Klukvin | |
Cop assistant (in car) | Michael Prismotrov-Belov | |
Akop (old gangster, Liparit''s brother) | Vladimir Episkoposyan | |
Priest | Slava Stepanyan |
Crew
Writer & Director | Roman Khrushch | |
Producer | Evgeny Zobov | |
Camera | Victor Shestoperov | |
Art Director | Oleg Smarovsky | |
Music by | Lev “LJOVA” Zhurbin | |
Editing by | Julia Batalova | |
Sound | Andrei Popovyan | |
Casting by | Tatiana Krasinskaya | |
Costumes | Nina Martynova | |
Make up artist | Tatiana Kolomitseva | |
Executive producer | Marina Nedostup | |
PR-manager | Elena Podolskaya |
Production
Russian title | Cherniy baran | |
Ehglish title | Black Lamb | |
Production | “Narodnoe Kino” Film Company | |
Production year & country | 2009, Russia |
Festivals
«Moscow premiere» film festival, 2010, Russia
«Smile, Russia!» film festival, 2010, Russia, a prize «For the kindest comedy of year»
Mumbai International Film Festival, “Panorama of World Cinema” section, 2010, India
Chennai International Film Festival, “Panorama of World Cinema” section, 2010, India
14th Budapest Russian Film Week, 2011, Hungary
«Festival of the Nations», Ebensee, 2011, Austria
Stalker International Film Festival, 2011, Russia
Review
On what, so it Russian culture can''t complain of traditional presence at it of laughter weepingly. It is its national brand, its specific feature generated by centuries. It is tradition leans against dramatic nature of human mutual relations and at the same time on ability to look at itself from outside. To look and see all comic party eternal and at first sight unsoluble contradictions. The film «Black Lamb» belongs to this tradition and develops it in critical situations of international relations and conflicts.
The film is made in a genre of a lyrical comedy in which people and their private relations appear most important. After all it is impossible instantly and for ever in one film to resolve all contradictions saved up by centuries.
The Caucasian family living on way of ancestors, inherits a car wash in Moscow. From mountain pastures they gets to capital - absolutely other world, other system of values. Naivety, trustfulness and desire to receive new friends turns around rigid repulse of inhabitants of Moscow. They see in visitors of strangers. Also can''t understand and accept their life together with their rams, with their vital rules. All laugh at visitors. Especially irritates surrounding their honoring of almost mythological figure of the grandfather. The family of newcomers passes through many tests. They are at war with gangsters who try to grasp a car wash. They battle to officials who want to take away from them the earth. They can''t find common language with watchman Nikolay Fedorovich. And the watchman is in horror from a kind and manners of the new owners.
Action develops a round dance of cheerful adventures. The son of the shepherd passionately falls in love. Grand daughters get acquainted with a big city and get to the most absurd situations. All it reminds popular in a fantasy motives of a meeting of the different civilizations . But everything, as well as should be in a kind comedy, comes to an end with a celebration of humanity, a brotherhood, mutual trust between people.
Verses of a final song
Madam the Parrot
Greetings dear comrades, glad to see you here
Up in th’Caucuses I have tended sheep for years
Now my Parrot here before you performs,
Parrot tells the fortunes, Parrot sings a song.
Tush-toushi, tush-toushi, Madam the Parrot
Tush-toushi, tush-toushi, Gimmi one ticket
Tush-toushi, tush-toushi, Madam the Parrot
Tush-toushi, tush-toushi, Gimmi one ticket
In one cage Parrot before you appears
In another cage his Mom’s shedding tears
Her she loves him dearly, her she is his Mom
Her she tragically wanna hug her son.
Now me and Parrot sing this to the end,
Then we go home and get into bed.
Him he has his heart ache, him he needs his sleep
Him he needs it urgently to have a nap indeed.
Tush-toushi, tush-toushi, Madam the Parrot
Tush-toushi, tush-toushi, Gimmi one ticket
Tush-toushi, tush-toushi, Madam the Parrot
Tush-toushi, tush-toushi, Gimmi one ticket