The Republic of ShKID (1966)

Gang boys from the streets of St. Petersburg, Russia are being tamed and educated at SHKID - Dostoevsky School.

Director:

Gennadi Poloka

Writers:

Grigori Belykh (story), Leonid Panteleev (story)

Stars:

Sergey Yurskiy, Yuliya Burygina, Pavel Luspekayev

Cast

Credited cast:
Sergey Yurskiy	...	Vicknixor
Yuliya Burygina	...	Elanlyum
Pavel Luspekayev	...	Kostalmed
Aleksandr Melnikov	...	Alnikpop
Anatoli Stolbov	...	Palvan
Georgiy Kolosov	...	Meftakhutdyn (as G. Kolosov)
Vera Titova	...	Marta
Lev Vajnshtejn	...	Yankel
Viktor Perevalov	...	Goga
Aleksandr Kavalerov	...	Kostya Fedotov (segment "Mamochka")
Nikolai Godovikov
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Guseyn Akhundov
Vyacheslav Golubkov	...	Yaponets (as Slava Golubkov)
Vladimir Kolesnikov	...	Sloyonov (as Volodya Kolesnikov)
Aleksandr Lipov

Storyline

The film is based on the eponymous book, written by two former street gangsters - Grigori Belykh and Leonid Panteleyev. Film is set in the 1920s St. Petersburg, Russia. Streets of the city are full of the homeless boys. They are caught to be raised and educated at the correction school named after Dostoevsky. The boys are street smart and difficult. But the faculty stands up to the challenge. The teaches are being devoted and caring, and gradually win the respect of the most difficult kids. The school director (Yursky) is a refined intellectual, who becomes a role model for the boys.

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Plot Keywords:

teen movie | school | russia | 1920s | camera shot of feet | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Family

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Certificate:

G

User Reviews

The thorns come before the roses

Set in 1920s St Petersberg when the book was written, this film was done in the 60s. This film is about the poor abandoned children growing up to be street wise, non trusting of anybody, mischievous, loveless. However their is one school master of an orphanage named after Dostoyevsky who is very compassionate and extremely patient to all these cases of children/kids picked off the street whose parents where either dead from suicide or execution amongst other things, is aware of the hope that lies beneath the rude and seemingly ungrateful kids who never new any better. The school master realizes, here is the part I like, that if he stops treating them as rascals as they have been all their lives, and shows that he is going to trust in them to have the place organized in the form of a republic with leaders and all, through fair voting, then he will gradually gain their respect.

Details

Country:

Soviet Union

Language:

Russian

Release Date:

29 December 1966 (Soviet Union)

Also Known As:

Csavargók köztársasága

Filming Locations:

St. Petersburg, Russia

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lenfilm Studio, Vtoroe Tvorcheskoe Obedinenie

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White