A young gambler owns a barbershop, which is on the verge of bankruptcy. So, he decides to marry a rich but ugly woman named Pronya, and thus to solve his pecuniary woes. Though, his heart belongs to another woman. The tragicomic intrigues are taking place in Kyiv, in the early 20thcentury.
Thursday / 21.04.2016 / 20:00
New Horizons Art House Cinema, 19a-21 Kazimierza Wielkiego St
Admission is free
Ukraine (USSR), 1961, 77 min.
Language: Ukrainian / Russian
Director: Viktor Ivanov
Screenplay: Viktor Ivanov
Dir. photography: Vadim Illienko
Editor: Varvara Bondina
Music: Vadym Homolyaka
Starring: Oleg Borisov, Marharyta Krynytsyna, Mykola Yakovchenko, Natalia Naum, Anatoliy Yurchenko
Production: National Oleksander Dovzhenko Film Studio
Awards: Dovzhenko State Prize of Ukraine 1999 (nominations: Best Director, Best Cameraman, Best Actor, Best Actress)
Kyiv, the early 20th-century. A young rascal named Svyryd Holokhvostyi (Not-A-Penny) is an owner of a barbershop. But he has gambled it away. And he decides to marry a rich but awfully ugly Pronya. The problem is – the same time he proposes his hand to the beautiful but poor Halya. Folk wisdom aptly underlines that If you run after two hares, you will catch neither. The comedy’s new soundtrack is full of the most quoted surzhyks (macaronic sociolects of Ukrainian and Russian languages) and a little sarcastic Ukrainian humor. The original Ukrainian language sound was labeled as a lost variant until 2013, when it was suddenly found in the film archive of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol. Beautiful Kyiv scenery, colorful costumes and wonderful acting allows you to enjoy the atmosphere, full of intrigues and making you laugh until you cry. It’s one of the few comedies in the history of Ukrainian film industry recognized to be its ‘pearl’.
Viktor Ivanov, born in 1909. Ukrainian film director, screenwriter, writer. Graduated from the All-Union State Institute of Cinematography. During the World War IIhe served in the Red Army, was wounded. After the war he worked at the Sverdlovsk, Vilnius, Kaunas film studios. Chief director of the National Oleksander Dovzhenko Film Studio (since 1950). Over the years, his films were banned. Ivanov’s Chasing Two Hares the best film was recognized for the worst film in 1961. Only 40 years later, the film and his director were worthily appreciated. Viktor Ivanov died in 1981 in Kyiv.
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