Violence on the Russian Screen and Youth Audience

Some of these materials was supported by the Russian Science Foundation for Humanities (RGNF, grant N 99-06-00008a) and partly published in “Russian Foundation for Humanity Journal”. 2001. N 1, pp. 131-145. The grant of Open Society Institute (1998) supported another part of these materials – by the grant № МСС809 and Senior Visiting Grant, Oct. 1998, ECHO Program (Central European University, Budapest,).

9.8.1. The Russian Cinematograph of the 90’s and the Theme of Violence

(partly published in Media I Skolen og Samfunn (Norway), 2000, n 1, p.16-19)

Historically it happened so, that the Russian society, including state censorship, treated violence on the screen more tolerantly, than, for example, erotic, and furthermore - pornography.

Violence on the Russian screen most frequently appeared in detectives, mystical and criminal dramas and melodramas in the 1910s. But since the 20s the basic genre of screen violence in Russia has become the war-films and the so called “historical & revolutionary" dramas and adventure movies. Mysticism and horror-films were completely excluded from the Russian screens. Detectives and westerns were pushed aside... Such a genre balance with these or those small updating was kept down till the middle of the 80s.

With the beginning of "perestroika" the Russian censorship has been gradually losing its power. And Russian filmmakers began to address the genres and themes that had been forbidden earlier. The amount of films containing the episodes of violence steadily grows, as well as the degree of the naturalism in its representation. In the beginning of the 90s, in the epoch of "reforms", the violence has become a basic attraction in Russian thrillers, criminal dramas, horror-films and detectives.

Let's apply to concrete figures and facts. I have made the content-analysis of the Russian repertoire of the 90s. The main question of this analysis is: How many Russian films of the 90s included the episodes of violence (fights, beatings, murders, executions, scenes of dead people, accidents, etc.). And here are the results:

Tab.1 VIOLENCE IN RUSSIAN FEATURE FILMS OF the 90s

My calculation shows, for example, that from 1990 till 2000, 23 Russian feature films included the word "death" in their title that is the same number of films that had this word in its title from 1919 to 1989! Many aggressive words, such as “murder”, “to kill ", "war", "enemy “, “to shoot", etc. appear in the titles of the Russian films of the 90s.

Certainly, the figures given in table 1, speak for themselves. However the amount of screen violence impresses: on the average about 42,8 % of percent of all production, made in Russia, contains the episodes of violence.

Of course, violence episodes are, for example, in “Inner Circle” by Anrei Konchalovsky, “Krustalev, the Car!” by Alexey German and others art-films.

 And if violence, alas, is the integral part of Russian life, the art has the indisputable right of its reflection on the screen. Thus Russian" high art ", as a rule, not only represents, but also condemns violence. However the content-analysis of Russian film-repertoire of the 90s shows, that the bulk of “film-violence” has a low art level (and low commercial potential): "The Wolves in a Zone ", "Hunting the Souteneur ", " Charged by Death ", etc...

The majority among the hundreds of Russian films of the 90s has not reached the “large screen”. But almost all of them were broadcasted on different television channels. Many of them were shown in prime time. That is in most accessible for children evening time. Of course, " 9 1/2 Weeks " was shown at midnight in Russia. However many channels show films containing violence both in morning, and in the evening ...

For example, very popular Russian TV-series “Cops” contain some quite naturalistic episodes of different sorts of murders, fights, close ups of dead bodies, etc. But this serial is placed in a TV program in the prime time (from 8 till 10 P.M.). Of course, this is an accessible time for Russian children.

The genre spectrum of the Russian films containing episodes of violence was rather wide in the 90s: dramas, detectives, thrillers, horror films, melodramas, parables, parodies and even comedies. The content-analysis has shown, that the basic plots of the Russian films, containing violence, are the following:

1. A guy with big muscles returns home from the army (from Afghanistan, etc.). He understands, that the gangsters (killers, Mafia) run the whole city (village). These “bad guys” killed (raped) his friend (variant: sister, girlfriend, relative). The brave “good guy” fights the bad guys. And you can see all the attributes of violence (murders, explosions and so on). Variant: the hero (heroine) revenges. His (her) enemies are serial maniacs, killers, aggressive drug addicts and others “bad guys”.

2. Sexual violence, as a part of the Russian life. The sexual relationships of a film’s hero are on the verge of sexual violence. Quite talented people produced some Russian movies of this kind. For example, “The Body” by Nikita Hubov. He reproduces an atmosphere of the Russian province with an extreme accuracy. Poor and hopeless life. A "normal" love history between a young girl and her boyfriend transforms into the criminal action. The boy rapes his girlfriend together with his friend. The girl wants to revenge...

3. Communist terror. The heroes of a film pass through executions and violence in concentration camps and prisons.

The stylistics of films about communist terror is rather diverse: traditional realism, grotesque, irony, etc. Some of these films really produce a shocking impression on the audience (" From a Hell to a Hell " by Dmitry Astrakhan).

Prevailing models of the contents of films:

- mass terror during war, as well as terror of communists; the communist regime deforms a person, transforms people into hangmen and victims; especially this is evident in the pictures about mass terror against of the people living in the Caucasus in the 40s. ("Cold", "The Road on the Edge of Life”);

- a common man trying to be impartial, avoiding politics, becomes a victim of a terror; and only then he understands an antihuman essence of communist authority; ( variant: people, sincerely believing in communist ideas and Stalin, experience the horrors of being the “enemy of the Soviet state”, realize that everything they believed in was nothing but the big lies, but it’s too late ( " Inner Circle ", "Burnt by the Sun ");

- " a revolutionary terror ", " the ideological terror " attracts first of all people with the agressive thirst for power, people with mental diseases, who want to keep the bloody trace in a history ("The Killer of the Emperor” , “Trotsky”).

-  A common man of the second half of the XX century goes to serve in the army (variant: gets into a prison, an asylum, etc.). And there he collides with severe violence ("Cane paradise ", “Ivin A.", “ Do - One! ", " 100 Days till the Demobilization ").

The action of these films, as a rule, takes place in unattractive interiors (dirty walls, half-destroyed buildings, flooded cellars, etc.). No doubt, the Russian army is shown as a typical model of the state, where violence is the main instrument of the power. This is very good material not only for naturalistic dramas, but also for gloomy parables, pathological visions, shock visual images and so on.

4. Gangsters hijack a ship (a bus, a plane, other transport means), terrorizing the passengers and the crew ("A Mad Bus", "Gangsters at the Ocean" etc.).

5. A gang or dangerous and cool murderer works in the city, stopping at nothing ("Satan", "Snake Spring", "The Contract with Death" etc.). However, instead of the "independent" murderer there can be a hired killer ("Dead Line", "Brother" etc.). The police is powerless...The variant of the end of the 90s: now and then we encounter the revival of the traditional detective plot: a criminal vs. an honest policeman.

6. The heroes are at war in a " trouble spot ", the violence has become their job ("Caravan of Death ", " Afghani Break ", " To Survive ", etc.).

7. The vampires attack defenseless people (" Drinking Blood "," Family of Vampires”, etc.).

8. The violence as an amusing action (`a la Tarantino). The problems of morals are rejected, as ridiculous and old-fashioned (" The Sky in Diamonds ", " The Body will be in the Ground... ", “Mom, don’t cry!”, etc.).

9. Violence in relation to children.

Having received freedom, the Russian cinema instead of former Puritanism produces many hard violence films about children. The action in these films takes place either at school or in prison. Dark restrooms, violence, drug addiction, cruelty... When a tutor of an orphanage, aware of the unofficial laws, chooses not to notice fresh blood on a mirror in a children's bedroom. When a strong one scoffs at a weak one...

20 years ago, Russian spectators watched sentimental stories about thoughtful and tender tutors, trying to create illusion of home cosines for children. But almost every other film about children and youth made in the 90s turned into the indictment. There is a terrible image of an unfriendly state house on the Russian screen. The teachers are shown in these films only as the additional tool of violence above children. 

Of course, different kinds of films may contain some violence scenes. But, to my mind, nevertheless, these pictures are not intended for preschoolers and children under 13 years of age, with their sensitive psychology. Therefore it would be better to show these films on TV after 10 P.M.