Sibirskiy tsiryulnik (1998)

Director:

Nikita Mikhalkov

Writers:

Nikita Mikhalkov (story)
Rustam Ibragimbekov (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

20 February 1999 (Russia)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

He's Russian. That explains a lot.

Plot:

Douglas is a foreign entrepreneur, who ventures to Russia in 1885 with dreams of selling a new, experimental...

Plot Keywords:

Russia | Assassination Attempt | Inventor | Vodka | Revolutionary

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Julia Ormond	...	Jane Callahan
Richard Harris	...	Douglas McCraken
Oleg Menshikov	...	André Tolstoi
Aleksei Petrenko	...	General Radlov (as Alexey Petrenko)
Marina Neyolova	...	The mother of Andrei Tolstoi (as Marina Neelova)
Vladimir Ilyin	...	Captain Mokin
Daniel Olbrychski	...	Kopnovsky
Anna Mikhalkova	...	Douniacha
Marat Basharov	...	Polievsky
Nikita Tatarenkov	...	Alibekov
Artyom Mikhalkov	...	Buturlin
Georgiy Dronov	...	Cadet Nazarov (as Georgy Dronov)
Avangard Leontyev	...	Andrei's Uncle (as Avangard Leontiev)
Robert Hardy	...	Forsten
Elizabeth Spriggs	...	Perepyolkina

Also Known As:

Сибирскiй цирюльникъ (Russia)
Il barbiere di Siberia (Italy)
Le barbier de Sibérie (France)
The Barber of Siberia (International: English title)

Runtime:

180 min | Russia:275 min (TV version)

Country:

Russia | France | Italy | Czech Republic

Language:

Russian | English | French | German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Finland:K-11 | Netherlands:6 | South Korea:15 | France:U | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12 | Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

Aldeia do Meco, Sesimbra, Setúbal, Portugal

Company:

Three T Productions

Trivia:

When the Shrovetide (Maslenitsa) scene was being filmed the temperature on the lake grew up to +12 centigrade and the ice could have broken with all the actors and decorations. So the movie makers had to cover it with dry ice and use liquid nitrogen constantly.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In scenes that take place in 1885, the cadets are carrying Mosin-Nagant rifles. This rifle did not exist at the time. It was introduced into service in 1891. The standard Russian infantry arm in the 1880's was the Berdan rifle.

Soundtrack:

Piano Concerto no. 23

A very nice movie

I must have an extremely bad taste. Most professional critics have written devastating comments on this movie. I just loved it, all 180 minutes of it! Of course, according to the rules, you should not mix slapstick and serious drama. Mikhalkov does it and the result completely vindicates him, I feel. Critics should not forget that cinema is about entertainment. They blame Mikhalkov because he did not make another high brow artistic movie like « Burnt by the sun ». I liked both movies equally well, different as they are. Critics say Mikhalkov presented a phony image of old Russia. Of course, his billboard image of tsarist Russia is not devoid of clichés and camp, but what a glorious camp it is! Mikhalkov is accused of painting a much too rosy picture of old Russia. But are the Russians (and other people) not entitled to some glimpses of the beautiful Russia that could have been, but somehow never seems able to materialize in this century of gloom ? The critics point out that the movie has a lot of formal weaknesses. To the heck with the critics ! This movie may not have a very deep message, but I think it illustrates, in a poetic way, the difficulty Russians and Westerners have at understanding each other. Either you love this movie, or you ‘d better leave it . When you look at the viewer voting results, you see that three quarters of those who voted on this movie adore it (scores 8-10), while the others loathe it (scores 1-4). Apparently it is a movie you can't be indifferent about.