Already more than a year Heated discussions continue around the historical melodrama “Matilda,” which tells the love story of the heir to the Russian throne, Nikolai Romanov, and the ballerina Matilda Kshesinskaya. On the eve of the premiere of the film, which is scheduled for October 26 this year, public and religious figures have again become active in demanding that it be banned.
There must be none of the domestic films in last decade was not subject to such ardent criticism from the public as “Matilda”. The historical drama directed by Alexei Uchitel is about the first love of Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich. In his youth, even before his marriage to the German princess Alexandra Feodorovna, future emperor became interested in the ballerina Matilda Kshesinskaya. According to a number of historians, this romance ended in 1894, and since then Nicholas II has not maintained any ties with the dancer. And although the picture has not yet appeared on the big screens of the country, many decided that it grossly distorted historical facts and the last Russian emperor is not shown in the best light. Meanwhile, the creators of the project do not claim one hundred percent historical accuracy.
How the scandal erupted
Alexey Uchitel decided to film a historical drama about the personal life of Emperor Nicholas II back in 2010. Initially, British actress Keira Knightley was considered for the role of Matilda - she really liked the script and happily agreed. However, during pre-production, Knightley became pregnant and dropped out of the project. For a long time they could not find a replacement for her and, in the end, they approved the aspiring Polish actress Michalina Olshanskaya. For the role of ruler Russian Empire Danila Kozlovsky was originally nominated, but instead the Tsarevich was played by the German actor Lars Eidinger. However, Kozlovsky remained in the project - he just got a different character. In addition, Ingeborga Dapkunaite, Sergei Garmash, Evgeniy Mironov and Grigory Dobrygin starred in the film.
Filming began in 2014 in various historical locations. Then almost no one paid attention to this project and, naturally, there was no talk of any social unrest. However, the further work on the film progressed, the more indignation it caused.
The release of the first trailer for Matilda in 2016 really alarmed the public. Having seen unrelated passages, many hastened to conclude that Nicholas II is presented in it as a flighty person adhering to lax moral principles. In the Russian Orthodox Church, for example, the upcoming film about the emperor’s love affairs was immediately called “slander.”
The video with the content of love and erotic scenes was especially disappointing social movement“Royal Cross”, which stated “distortion historical events"and "anti-Russian and anti-religious provocation in the sphere of culture." For support, they turned to Russian State Duma deputy Natalya Poklonskaya so that she would initiate a review of the film “Matilda.”
Poklonskaya, in turn, made a lot of efforts to ensure that the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation took up this case. Moreover, she tried to get a ban on showing the film. According to the politician, “Matilda” offends the feelings of believers, since Nicholas II is officially considered Russian Orthodox Church to the saints. This position was supported by many Russians, who in the same 2016 created a petition on the Change.org website addressed to Patriarch Kirill and the Ministry of Culture.
“The content of the film is a deliberate lie, since in history there are no facts of cohabitation between Russian tsars and ballerinas. Russia is presented in the film as a country of gallows, drunkenness and fornication, which is also a lie. Included in the picture bed scenes Nicholas II with Matilda, the Tsar himself is presented as a cruel, vindictive libertine and adulterer,” says the petition, which was signed by almost 25 thousand people.
The director of the film, Alexei Uchitel, did not enter into open polemics with dissatisfied public and religious figures and asked to wait for its release on the big screens in order to draw appropriate conclusions. “Honestly, I’m already tired of Mrs. Poklonskaya’s war with me and the entire film crew. Instead of calmly finishing the film, I am forced to be distracted by nonsense, nonsense and insults,” Uchitel said in April of this year in an interview with RIA Novosti.
However, Natalya Poklonskaya decided to go to the end and found new clues that would help her officially achieve a ban on the screening of “Matilda.” The deputy stated that she had at her disposal documents indicating dubious financing schemes for the film Teacher. And later she announced that she intended to represent the interests of the Romanov family in court, whose members were also skeptical about the historical drama.
Who stood up for the Teacher and “Matilda”, and who supports neutrality
In such a difficult situation, many of the director’s colleagues supported him. In defense, members of the Film Union published an open letter in which they spoke out against censorship in the industry due to pressure on the Teacher.
“Alexey Uchitel’s film Matilda is scheduled for release only in October 2017, and no one has seen it yet. But for several months now a campaign has been waged against the film, which only short-sighted people can consider a kind of advertising,” the message says.
In addition, the chairman of the committee State Duma on culture, director Stanislav Govorukhin, criticized the idea of testing the film. He said that such initiatives need to be “cut off in the bud,” since it is impossible to verify something that in fact does not yet exist. Govorukhin noted that he does not understand why people are outraged real facts from the biography of a historical figure.
Representatives even joined the discussions executive power. Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov asked not to make hasty conclusions before the premiere of the film. And Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev warned citizens against manifestations of intolerance and aggression in the cultural sphere.
The Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Medinsky, also spoke about the situation. “The law does not stipulate violations that could justify banning the film. The hysterical campaign around a completely ordinary film, which in no way insults the memory of the Tsar, outrages me. The people who promote it have nothing to do with Orthodox religion and even to the idea of Christianity. I’m ashamed of them,” the politician said in an interview with the French publication Figaro.
There is only a month left before the premiere of the most talked about picture of this fall. However, many public figures do not lose hope that the film will still be banned in last moment. Due to the rising wave of negativity, several cinema chains have already refused to show Matilda for safety reasons. Thus, extremists recently set fire to cars near the office of lawyer Konstantin Dobrynin, who represents the interests of Alexei Uchitel. Leaflets with the slogan “Burn for Matilda” were scattered near the mangled cars.
On October 26, Alexei Uchitel’s acclaimed film “Matilda” will be released on the big screen. Although viewers have not yet seen the film, many have already taken up arms against it: there is an opinion that the film discredits the image of Emperor Nicholas II. On the eve of the all-Russian premiere, “Matilda” was shown to journalists. The site's correspondent looked at the picture and tried to figure out how it could offend the feelings of believers.
Mass protests
For several months, Orthodox activists, led by Russian State Duma deputy Natalya Poklonskaya, have been regularly speaking out against Alexei Uchitel’s film “Matilda.” IN Lately It has become fashionable to shoot films and TV series on historical topic: about the reign of Catherine II, about the art of the “Thaw” era, about the revolution. The teacher decided to move away from politics and made a movie about love.
The picture tells about the love of the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II and famous ballerina Matilda Kshesinskaya. After watching the trailer, many felt that this movie discredits the memory of the canonized emperor: because there are many sex scenes in the film, the Russian Tsar is played by a German actor, and in general, Nicholas did not have any affair with the ballerina.
Nevertheless, the fact remains: Nicholas II still had a relationship with Kshesinskaya. This is confirmed by numerous memoirs and archival records. Another thing is that in former times they were not ashamed of this: the relationship between the future tsar and the ballerina lasted even before his marriage to Alexandra Fedorovna, and Nikolai himself did not hide his sympathy. Despite this, Orthodox activists go out on pickets, prayer services and prayer marches against the screening of the film. In fact, it turned out that all their efforts were not worth it: “Matilda” turned out to be just a beautiful fairy tale about love - albeit with characters from real life.
The film "Matilda" is simply a beautiful fairy tale about love. Photo: Still from the film
Beautiful fairy tale
First of all, the cinema amazes with its beauty. It resembles a magical Disney cartoon: a future king in love and a ballerina fly on hot-air balloon against the backdrop of the brilliant fountains of Peterhof during sunset, they meet in the premises of the Mariinsky Theater and hold dates in the halls of the Catherine Palace in Tsarskoe Selo. In between romantic scenes there are performances by ballerinas at the Mariinsky Theater. No politics - just love and ballet.
You shouldn't judge the film harshly: you should treat it as fairy tale. Only the characters themselves are taken from real life, and not all of them, and the key events are the wedding of the heir to the throne and his coronation. Everything else is mostly an artistically embellished fiction. If you judge the film strictly, you can find many historical inconsistencies and even gross mistakes in it.
So, for example, in reality Kshesinskaya was not included in Catherine Palace, and if Nikolai appeared with a ballerina in public, there would be a scandal. Danila Kozlovsky plays a completely non-existent character - the half-mad lieutenant Vorontsov, who pursues Kshesinskaya with manic passion and even hits his main rival, the heir to the throne, in the face. That's not what's important in the film. The teacher did not try to retell the story: he showed beautiful story, only based on real events.
No hurt feelings
The film lasts 2 hours 10 minutes, but this time flies by. What is happening on the screen captivates the viewer, although everyone already knows how it will all end - Nikolai will marry Alexandra Feodorovna and become king, and Kshesinskaya will be consoled by marrying his cousin, Grand Duke Andrei Vladimirovich.
"Matilda" was filmed in St. Petersburg, Peterhof and Tsarskoe Selo. Photo: Still from the film
"Matilda" can hardly offend anyone's feelings, just as children's fairy tales cannot offend a sane adult. All sex scenes, of which there are not many in the film, are filmed as correctly as possible, without demonstrating violent passion or naked bodies. The actors look harmonious in their roles.
You can’t learn history from “Matilda,” but by watching the film, you can touch a romantic secret that will surprise you with its warmth and beauty.
How Matilda became the most scandalous film before its release
Filming of the film under the working title “Matilda” began in June 2014, “but, as planned, was interrupted several times due to the busyness of the performers and waiting for location,” says the website of the Rock Films studio. In 2015, work resumed, and the film crew planned to release the film in the fall of 2016.
April 20, 2017. Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky criticized the situation surrounding the film, calling the situation “an orgy of democracy.”
“This is an orgy of democracy. How can you judge a film that no one has seen yet?
April 25, 2017. First Deputy Minister of Culture Vladimir Aristarkhov, that when issuing permission to distribute the film “Matilda”, the conclusions of the expert opinion will not be taken into account, and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev officials will not interfere with creative process creating works of culture and art and not explaining to the artist what he should do.
“If we don’t want to return to the times when culture was strictly regulated from above, then we all need to take this into account, including officials and politicians. In general, any person in power needs to suppress the temptation to explain to the artist what he should do.”
May 2, 2017. The Russian Orthodox Church comes out with new criticism of the film, the head of the Synodal Department for External Church Relations, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, for its “blasphemous” and “apotheosis of vulgarity.”
“This, it seems to me, is about our national treasure, about our history. We shouldn't spit on our history. We should not subject people of such a level and magnitude as the last Russian emperor to such public humiliation.”
In the same year, deputy from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation Valery Rashkin addressed the leadership of the FSB with a request about the activities of the movement. According to the opinion, the deputy answered.
August 1, 2017. A prayer vigil against Matilda took place in Moscow. Deputy Natalya Poklonskaya called for people to stand the day before. The event brought together 500 people who prayed “for the enlightenment of the creators of such a “cinema.”
August 8, 2017. The head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, sent a letter to the Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky with a request to prevent the screening of the film “Matilda” on the territory of the republic.
“To live with honor, we must remember our history, be proud and honor those who fought for us. This memory is sacred and noble. We, the descendants of the victors, must not only sacredly honor the memory of the defenders of the Motherland, but also educate the younger generation in the spirit of respect for our history. I ask you to exclude the Chechen Republic from the distribution certificate for the screening of the film “Matilda”.
Kadyrov's teacher should personally watch the film before asking for it to be banned.
The next day, the Ministry of Culture received a request from the Dagestan authorities to ban the film.
August 10, 2017. The Ministry of Culture will screen the film to viewers over 16 years of age throughout Russia. Natalya Poklonskaya, in the decision of the Ministry of Culture, provides the basis for holding ministry employees accountable “for violating the law on countering extremist activities.” Meanwhile, regional authorities still have the right to limit the demonstration of “Matilda” on their territory. In addition, distributors can do this: for example, the only film distributor in Ingushetia refused to show the film because of fragments that offend the religious feelings of believers.
Alexey Uchitel to the Minister of Internal Affairs and the head of the FSB, demanding that after the attack on his studio in St. Petersburg, they ensure their safety, as well as the safety of the audience who are waiting for the premiere of the film “Matilda”.
September 4, 2017. Channel One announced that it would show a four-part version of the film. Shortly before this, the director announced that a series based on “Matilda” would be released on television in 2019, but did not specify on which TV channel the premiere was planned.
On the morning of September 4 in Yekaterinburg, a minibus loaded with barrels of gasoline and gas cylinders arrived in the lobby of the cinema, after which the building began. According to eyewitnesses, after the collision, two people ran out of the car, one of them threw a Molotov cocktail into the building. Man suspected of arson canceled "due to technical reasons." “The show is postponed to October 25, 2017, 18:00,” the website states.
On the same day, there are two cars at the office of Uchitel’s lawyer Konstantin Dobrynin. “Burn for Matilda” leaflets were scattered at the scene of the arson. About what happened
Directed by Alexei Uchitel, it is certainly the most scandalous film premiere of 2017. What is the film about and why is it demanded to be banned? Why does Poklonskaya think that watching Matilda is a sin? How did a film claiming to be a historical drama cause a scandal and gain a reputation as almost extremist?
So what is the movie Matilda about? The plot of the film is about relationships last Russian Emperor Nicholas II with a Russian ballet dancer of Polish origin, prima ballerina Mariinsky Theater Matilda Kshesinskaya. Love line Nicholas II with Matilda Kshesinskaya, as sources say, took place even before Nikolai Romanov’s ascension to the throne as emperor and before his marriage to Alexandra Fedorovna.
Why the scandal? A combination of several factors merged together, and this is an insult to the feelings of believers, multiplied by historical inaccuracies, plus the personal protest of Natalia Poklonskaya. Firstly, the Russian Orthodox Church rebelled against the screening of the film, calling the story fiction. Secondly, Nicholas II in 2000 were canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church, which seems to hint: What kind of extramarital affair with a saint are you talking about? Third, the main wave of indignation was stirred up by none other than Natalya Poklonskaya - prosecutor of the Republic of Crimea, member of the " United Russia"and deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation. Poklonskaya is outraged by everything in the film - the plot, the cast, and of course the hint about, as she put it, "fornication".
In her interviews with the media, Poklonskaya has repeatedly spoken out about why she wants to ban this film. A State Duma deputy called it extremist, discrediting the honor of “our sovereign”. Here is one of the last quotes about the film:
“I would like to note the need to take measures to recognize the plot of the film “Matilda” about the “fornication” of the Holy Pleasant of God and Sovereign of the Russian Empire, presented by a German porn actor promoting Satanism, as extremist material, which actually leads to manifestations of extremism on the part of detainees,” Regnum quotes as saying Poklonskaya.
The closer the film premieres, the more tense the atmosphere around it becomes. Let us recall earlier reports about mass prayer services in churches in Russia - with the aim of appealing to the Almighty so that he would assist in the ban of “Matilda”. For the time being, the Russian Orthodox Church did not use aggressive methods of pressure on the authorities, limiting itself to prayers for a ban, public statements and the like. Now extreme measures are used by pseudo-activists, hiding behind the Church.
It is no longer known for certain who provoked whom to persecute Alexei Uchitel’s film – the Poklonskaya Church, or the Poklonskaya Church, but The Matilda scandal has given rise to dangerous speculation on this topic. Thus, the day before, an “Orthodox activist”, Alexander Kalinin, the leader of the organization, was already detained "Christian State" . He was detained for threatening to set fire to cinemas if they showed “Matilda,” KP reports.
"Burn for Matilda"- these are the leaflets that were scattered at the entrance to the office of director Alexei Uchitel’s lawyer, which were discovered after the car was set on fire. According to Vesti, the incident occurred on September 11, and a criminal case was opened into the arson. Now the suspects - three of them, including Kalinin - have been detained.
This is not to say that threats do not work. Whether “out of sin”, or in order to preserve reputation - who knows, but the first refusals from “Matilda” have already thundered. It is reported that two major film distribution networks have already refused to distribute the film – “ Formula Kino" And "Cinema Park".
By the way, the main opponent of the film, Natalya Poklonskaya, has already commented on the situation with arson and threats:
“The absolutely legal situation with the film Matilda is being used by someone for purposes that have nothing to do with protecting our history and Faith. Manifestation of extremism in this issue this is part of a specific plan aimed at destabilizing society, dividing people, discrediting Orthodox believers,” Poklonskaya said.
Of course, this is not a solution – to fight an “extremist film” using extremist methods. Vladimir Medinsky also agrees with this.
What about the Ministry of Culture? Many, if not outraged, were at least surprised detachment of the Ministry of Culture from the Matilda scandal. After the latest absurd events with arson, the head of the Ministry of Culture, Vladimir Medinsky, nevertheless spoke about the film, saying that The Ministry of Culture can no longer stand aside:
“I am often reproached for being too conservatistic. And as a conservative, I want to say: such self-proclaimed “activists” discredit both state cultural policy and the Church,” KP quotes Medinsky as saying, “I don’t know what considerations the respected Mrs. Poklonskaya is guided by in starting and supporting this hubbub. Maybe from the heart. Moreover, I am not ready to unravel the motivations of the various “activists”-arsonists who brazenly call themselves “Orthodox”
It is worth noting that Medinsky himself looked at the picture and noted that There is nothing offensive to the memory of Nicholas II in Matilda.
Poklonskaya, apparently, does not intend to give up, claiming that the Teacher will answer in court to the descendants of the Romanov house.
How did caring viewers rate the film? There is a month left before the premiere of the film, however, the first screenings have already been held - in Vladivostok. On September 20, “Matilda” is expected to be shown in Novosibirsk, and residents of Astrakhan will also see the movie before the premiere.
: the author of the picture said that the examination carried out in St. Petersburg state university, did not find any elements in it that offended anyone’s feelings (State Duma deputy Natalya Poklonskaya insists on this, seeking a ban on the film).
The film "Matilda" is now definitely the most discussed in Russia. With these words, the creators of the film entered the press conference room. “Never in my life would I have thought that I would hold such a press conference about a film that you have not seen,” noted director Alexey Uchitel.
Another reason to talk not about the filming process, but about the legal status of the film, and now certainly the last one. Today, the director's lawyers for the first time published the results of a thorough examination of the entire, not yet released film.
“To summarize what the experts said: the film does not offend anyone’s feelings, does not disparage a group of people on any grounds, does not promote pornography, violence, cruelty and does not contain signs or elements of crimes,” stated lawyer Konstantin Dobrynin.
The detailed conclusion took several pages. The experts gave answers to nine questions, the essence of which boiled down to only one: can Feature Film offend the feelings of believers. But it all started with explicit shots: the first trailer of the film outraged the so-called Orthodox social activists - they say that excessive eroticism has vulgarized the story, and all the filmmakers have distorted it.
Then there was an appeal to deputy Natalya Poklonskaya, and only after that - a request for an inspection to the fullest extent. The more they checked, the more activists believed: the film, which had not yet been released, was a direct insult. “The intensity of passions was provoked by the number of letters that reached cinemas threatening to burn down these cinemas if they released this film,” says CEO"Karoprokat" company Alexey Ryazantsev.
Alexey Uchitel himself says: he met with Poklonskaya several times, and all the conversations boiled down to one thing - they say, “it’s not good to make a film about a person who is canonized,” especially to embellish the plot with artistic deviations from real story. “They will check every line of the script to see if it corresponds to the film. And if not, then what?” argues Alexey Uchitel. “Then this is misused public money, this is a crime, and so on... I won’t explain: there is public money, but it’s It's only 25 percent."
Initially, the film was conceived as a story about famous ballerina Matilda Kshesinskaya, but later the script was reworked. The main character was the future Emperor Nicholas II. All the events told in the film are his path to the throne, with its inherent human tragedy, self-sacrifice and love affairs. When starting work on the film, Alexey Uchitel did not suspect that the resonance would be such, and now he never tires of reminding: “Matilda” is not a historical film, but an artistic film, with an age limit of “16+”.