Beware of the Car

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Beware of the Car
Beregis avto poster.jpg
Soviet billboard theatrical poster of the film
Directed byEldar Ryazanov
Written byEmil Braginsky
Eldar Ryazanov
StarringInnokenty Smoktunovsky
Oleg Yefremov
Andrei Mironov
Anatoli Papanov
Georgiy Zhzhonov
Narrated byYury Yakovlev
CinematographyAnatoly Mukasei
Vladimir Nakhabtsev
Edited by
Music byAndrey Petrov
Production
company
Release date
1966
Running time
94 min.
CountrySoviet Union
LanguageRussian

Beware of the Car (Russian: Береги́сь автомоби́ля, translit. Beregis Avtomobilya, English titles Uncommon Thief, or Watch out for the Automobile) is a 1966 Soviet crime comedy-drama film directed by Eldar Ryazanov, based on a screenplay by Emil Braginsky and produced by Mosfilm. The film stars Innokenty Smoktunovsky, Oleg Yefremov, Anatoli Papanov, Andrei Mironov, and Georgiy Zhzhonov, among others.

Beware of the Car is recognized for being a satire of the film noir genre, which was highly unusual in Brezhnev-era society. It is credited as in launching Soviet political satire as a genre of films, typified by Ryazanov.[citation needed]

Plot[]

Yuri Detochkin (Smoktunovsky) is a humble Soviet insurance agent that steals cars from corrupt Soviet officials in a manner akin to Robin Hood, disappointed by the militsiya being unable to fight them efficiently. One of the Detochkin's victims is Dima Semitsvetov (Mironov), a retail embezzler mocked but tolerated by his colorful father-in-law Semyon Vasilyevich (Papanov), a retired Soviet Army officer.

Detochkin sells some stolen cars and anonymously transfers the money to the accounts of various orphanages. Detective Maksim Podberyozovikov (Yefremov) investigates his crimes and tries to prosecute him, but faces a serious moral problem in doing so, partly because the suspect appears to be his amateur theatre mate and friend.

Cast[]

The author's narration was read by Yury Yakovlev.

Production[]

The film's name is derived from traffic signs warning of locations where cars could potentially hit pedestrians or motorists, such as parking garages.

Signs reading "beware of the car", warning of locations where cars could potentially hit pedestrians or motorists. These signs were common in Soviet cities.

In the film, Detochkin and Podberezovikov act together in an amateur theater which rehearses Hamlet. This is a play from Smoktunovsky's real-life acting career: he was reputed as the "best Hamlet on the Soviet stage" and starred in a Hamlet film adaptation.

The waltz[1] performed in the film is a distinguished melody composed by Andrey Petrov. Sergey Nikitin's repertoire includes a song named Glassy Gentleman (lyrics by Yevgeny Yevtushenko), which used a waltz from the film.

All cars stolen by Detochkin are the GAZ-21 Volga, the most prestigious Soviet car model of the time. The GAZ-21 was the standard personal car for Soviet elite, an intentional satire element of the film which Ryazanov found very hard to get approved.

One scene featuring a petrol station features American vehicles, such as a 1955 Buick and a 1955 Oldsmobile. These were an extremely rare sighting for the location, since the United States had sanctions with the USSR and thus did not sell these cars within the Eastern Bloc.

Awards[]

The film was the leader of Soviet film distribution for 1966, having been watched by 29 million people.[citation needed] Innokenty Smoktunovsky was recognized as the Best Actor of 1966.[by whom?]

The film won awards[which?] at the 1966 Edinburgh International Film Festival, 1966 Sydney Film Festival, 1967 Melbourne International Film Festival, and 1969 Cartagena Film Festival.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Waltz - instrumental - MP3 - 3,7 MB - 128 Kbps at Cinema music (1938 - 1985) website (in Russian)

External links[]

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