Est - Ouest (1999)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Régis Wargnier

Writers:

Rustam Ibragimbekov (scenario and dialogue) and
Sergei Bodrov (scenario and dialogue) ...

Release Date:

1 September 1999 (France)

Genre:

Romance | Drama

Plot:

June 1946: Stalin invites Russian emigres to return to the motherland. It's a trap: when a ship-load from France arrives in Odessa...

Plot Keywords:

Passport | Sexual Promiscuity | Iron Curtain | Swimming | Josef Stalin

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 3 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Oleg Menshikov	...	Aleksei Golovin (as Oleg Menchikov)
Sandrine Bonnaire	...	Marie, his wife
Catherine Deneuve	...	Gabrielle Develay
Sergei Bodrov Jr.	...	Sasha Vasilyev (as Sergueï Bodrov Jr)
Ruben Tapiero	...	Seryozha, age 7
Erwan Baynaud	...	Seryozha, age 14
Grigori Manukov	...	Pirogov (as Grigori Manoukov)
Tatyana Dogileva	...	Olga (as Tatiana Doguileva)
Bogdan Stupka	...	Colonel Boyko
Meglena Karalambova	...	Nina Fyodorovna
Atanass Atanassov	...	Viktor
Tania Massalitinova	...	Anastasia Aleksandrovna
Valentin Ganev	...	Volodya Petrov
Nikolai Binev	...	Sergei Kozlov (as Nikolaï Binev)
René Féret	...	Ambassadeur de France

Also Known As:

Восток-Запад (Russia)
Изток - Запад (Bulgaria: Bulgarian title)
East-West (Europe: English title)
La vida prometida (Spain)
[Est]Ouest (France) (poster title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violence and brief sensuality.

Runtime:

121 min

Country:

Bulgaria | France | Russia | Spain | Ukraine

Language:

French | Russian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Malaysia:18PL | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | France:U | Germany:12 (w) | New Zealand:M | Peru:14 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | USA:PG-13 | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Burgas, Bulgaria

Company:

UGC YM

Trivia:

The two main Russian actors (Oleg Menshikov and Sergei Bodrov Jr.) do not speak French. They memorized all the lines phonetically.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: When Marie goes to the KGB building in Kiev and Alexei finds her there, persuading her to leave, the viewer can read a sign on the building that says, in Cyrillic letters, "Ministerstvo na..." This is a Bulgarian genitive construction, meaning "The Ministry of..." The only Slavic languages that show the genitive case in this fashion are Bulgarian and Macedonian. The genitive case is marked differently in Russian and Ukrainian, which shows that the "KGB" building could not actually have been in Kiev. This makes sense because the film was partially shot in Bulgaria.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Femme Fatale (2002)

A "you must see" movie

'Est Ouest' is an impressive production based upon the true story of family comprising a Russian émigré husband, French wife and a little boy.In the heyday of Coldwar, Stalin invites all émigrés who left the country in the time of 1917 Civil War.The émigrés are promised a heaven once they promote to the restoration of order and rehabilitation of the war-torn economy.This demand is no surprising in view of the fact that Soviet Russia was the country hit by the war the most in terms of human and material resources. Once euphoric, the returnees find themselves disillusioned by old-fashioned, paranoid and corrupt political and economic fabric.

The story is capturing sometimes thrilling. I have shared the excitement, fear and hope of heroes and heroines vividly. The music of the film pulls you vividly to understand how precious one's freedom can be.Unlike some criticism that the film misdirected reality,I would confidently maintain the belief that the story of the film is only one of the hundreds of tragedies in the Iron Curtain. Stalin's notorious reputation in employing violence and pressure is nothing but a historical truth. Eastern Europe is so beautiful..Kiev and Sofya..I shall never forget the dance scene at the hotel in Sofya. What is also worth-seeing is the entry of heroes to the Greek-Bulgarian boundary on the mountains capped with snow.This is the Balkans.. I must admit that I spent much time in trying to find this film as DVD.Swedem,Norway,Denmark,Germany,Belgium..nowhere..I did not have chance to request it online.I did not have credit cards..:)) Finally,I found it in mega store Virgin( Thanks Virgin)in Paris. I have soundtrack album of this unforgettable film too. If you haven't seen this film yet, you have missed a lot! By watching and- if possible- purchasing this film, you will have done a great contribution to movie industry which suffers from prevalence of crap movies. I am still under the influence of 'Est Ouest'.I hope u shall feel the same..