Cinema epopee "Liberation": actors, plot

For a very long time, few films were filmed about the Great Patriotic War. In 1967, a film epic "Liberation" was shot, the actors of which literally suffered a quarter of a century ago and again lived the most difficult periods of the war. Director Yuri Ozerov knew firsthand about the war and tried to do everything as accurately as possible, but the veterans did not quite like the film after the release.

Who took part in creating the painting

Of the several countries, specialists in roles were engaged. The film epic "Liberation", the actors of which coped well with the task, was created by the efforts of people who came to the set from:

• THE USSR;
• GDR;
• Poland;
• Italy;
• Romania.

Most of the actors were invited from the theaters of the USSR. Although it can not be said that all were representatives of the theatrical scene. It is interesting that one of the founders of the circus dynasty, the clown and trainer Yuri Durov, was invited to the role of Winston Churchill.

Passed heavily shooting. The epic "Liberation", the actors of which were represented by different countries, were carefully supervised by the Central Committee of the CPSU. For example, because of the check-up in the film, the first years of the war, which were not the most successful for the Soviet Army, are not mentioned, and the action begins immediately after the battle on the Kursk Bulge.

How many parts the epopee shares

In total, in this large-scale project there are 5 films that were shot at a record time for those times - for 4 years. Already in 1972, the fifth picture came out on a wide screen. For the script was invited well-known journalist Oscar Kurganov, who was reporting from the front, and his co-author was Yuri Bondarev, famous for the work "Hot Snow".

By the way, this novel was written in 1970, when the epic "Liberation" was filmed. All of its series, by modern standards, had the format of an independent film. If you want to see all the parts of the film, then you have to spend almost seven and a half hours near the screen. Part of the film involved the novel "Battalions ask for fire," which was later screened separately. In "Liberation" thanks to this book appeared Alexander, played by the now known Sergei Nikonenko.

"The Fiery Arc"

When the epic "Liberation" was filmed, the actors were not only transferred to several years ago, but also became famous historical figures. In the first part we see the command of the USSR, consisting of Zhukov, Rokossovsky and Vasilevsky. They selected the actors most similar to their prototypes to the film "Liberation". Cinema epic (1 series), whose actors, no doubt, talented, gave many a start in life. Mikhail Ulyanov, for example, played Zhukov after this film at least 15 times, so after death was buried with military honors, as a true marshal.

Shooting of the famous Battle of Kursk, which covers the first part of the epic, was conducted in the vicinity of Kiev. Part of the film shows battle scenes, they were shot on a color film, and black and white was used to cover historical facts, for example, it highlighted what is happening in Moscow. It was because of the filming of battles that the permission to shoot under Kursk was not received. Due to the use of pyrotechnics, the bombs or shells that remained in the ground could explode.

"Breakthrough"

Interestingly everything in the film "Liberation" (kinopepeya): actors, the history of creation and real historical facts. The second part is more interesting in this regard. She talks about the ambiguous Belarusian front, which was created specifically to distract most of the Germans' forces.

On the one hand, this is a sad fact, since all the defenders of the false bridgehead were killed, but on the other, it was this that helped the Soviet army to liberate Orel and Belgorod.

In this part appears the only Italian actor - Ivo Garrani, who played Benito Mussolini. He is arrested during the course of the operation, and to free him from custody begins the German-Italian campaign. The conference in Tehran, which was held in 1943, puts an end to this part.

"Direction of the main attack"

In 1944 the Soviet territory was completely liberated. The film epic "Liberation" tells about it, the actors of which told not only about the battles, but also about what was happening in the offices of the supreme commanders-in-chief. For example, in this part the spectators are shown a conspiracy of the generals, during which Hitler was sentenced to death. Adolf Hitler and other participants in the war from the German side were played by famous actors in the German Democratic Republic. Representatives of Germany refused to participate in the film.

Front-line shooting was conducted in the same place where the first famous battle was played - on the outskirts of Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky. Involved in such a project as the film epic "Liberation", the actors reconstructed the offensive operation "Bagration", which became decisive. The third film consists of two parts, which complement each other and describe in detail all the events that took place at that time.

"Battle for Berlin"

This film tells of the main battle that took place on the outskirts of Berlin. In addition, the famous Yalta Conference was reproduced, which included Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin. Roosevelt played a Polish actor, but for the role of Joseph Vissarionovich invited a real Georgian - Buhuti Zakariadze.
It's interesting that if you see a photo shoot (the epic "Liberation"), the actors who played it will remember you for a long time, although they are not all recognizable. For example, from the third part in the film, a famous writer and actor with a complex character, Vasily Shukshin, takes part. It's hard to know because his hero Marshal Konev was shaved head shaved.

"The Last Assault"

For the filming of this part of the GDR not only contributed to the filming tape, but also gave permission to work in his capital. To recreate the Reichstag, three sites were involved: survey plans were filmed in a dilapidated cathedral in Germany, the premises were created on the Mosfilm (scenery), and the Berlin House of Technology became the upper part of the headquarters of the Hitlerites.

The epic "Liberation" was filmed, the actors and roles of which are now considered an example for other films about the war, in the area of the capital of the GDR, to be reconstructed. According to the Germans, all the houses, which became decorations for the film, were soon demolished, and in their place a new quarter was built.

A scene in the Berlin metro

A lot of disputes evoked the adaptation of the historical fact - the flooding of the German subway. Many of this event is considered fictional. The explosion was necessary for the fascists in order to cut off the Soviet soldiers from such a convenient mode of movement that they had to move directly through the streets of the city. They produced his SS sappers from the Nordland detachment.

Reproduced this story (film epic "Liberation") actors from both countries. This event in real life was a very sad fact about the war, as civilians and wounded men hid in the tunnels. This fact was used in the film to demonstrate the unscrupulousness of the fascists.

Scene in the Reich Chancellory

In the fifth part there was another famous scene, in which the then-young actor Leonid Kuravlev took part. He played a brave signalman who pulled the cable into the Reich Chancellery. According to the plot of the film, he had to become an involuntary witness to the death of Goebbels, played by Horst Giese.

Interestingly, this actor not only appeared in the last three parts of the epic, but also played in the very first film: there his role was small - he appeared in the frame as a captured sapper. Because of the artfully made makeup, not all viewers noticed this.

Soldiers who fought and lived on screens

It is noteworthy that in the film "Liberation" (a film epic), the actors played military men, quite unlike those painted on agitational leaflets. Many noted that they were real, alive, showing their feelings. Among them were violators of discipline, and lovers.

For example, one of the main characters, played by Larisa Golubkina and Nikolai Olyanin, showed on the screen not only courage, but also true love. Yuri Kamorny, who played a lieutenant of tank troops, was remembered on the scene of spending the night in combat equipment. Yuri Shtemenko, who consulted the picture, was not happy with this scene. However, he did not like himself either. Cleon Protasov played it reliably, but the director missed the fact that Shtamenko's epaulettes had more stars in 1943 and lacked several orders. The selection of the requisite was carried out with the help of a military archive, and in it were not quite reliable data.

The viewers liked the image of the brave but at the same time ironic radio operator Dorozhkin, played by Valery Nosik. At the time of the release of the films Zhukov was still alive, but scenes with a real soldier's life and violations of discipline were left. They made the film more realistic and less agitational. With the legendary military commanders, the crew had to coordinate almost every step.

What the critics did not like

Despite the fact that over a hundred veterans and commanders advised the picture, some scenes remained controversial. One did not like how the realities of soldier's life are described, others - small episodes and scenes. In the first part, the shooting time was incorrectly chosen: at the very beginning of the film, the moon was visible in the sky, although in fact in 1943 that day was a new moon.

In addition to criticism of Shtemenko, which has already been discussed above, the second picture was caught in unreliability. The scene became controversial, where Zhukov consults with Epishev. In real life, this simply could not be, since the marshal was famous for his decisions and imperious character. After viewing the first parts of the "Liberation", Epishev left the studio without saying goodbye.

Meanwhile, in close circles, a conversation was held that this scene was included in the film at the direction of the party of power. By the time the epic was released, Epishev was appointed army general and chief of political administration.

Veterans of tank troops criticized the episode of the hand-to-hand fighting of the Soviet and German soldiers. According to the story, two combat vehicles (one on each side) caught fire. And the tankmen, instead of extinguishing the equipment necessary for the troops, jumped out of it and started the fight with their bare hands. In fact, the soldiers extinguished the flames and dispersed on the tanks, paying no attention to each other.

Response to the epic movie

In general, the audience reacted to the picture ambiguously. At that time, people were not accustomed to the artistic vision of historical facts, so another interpretation seemed blasphemous. At the same time, the last two parts of the film were marked at the film festival in Tbilisi as the best films of that time.

Many actors who participated in the film "Liberation" (movie epic), actors have now become known and loved. We already mentioned that Ulyanov participated in the film gave a new role - he became the best Zhukov in the history of cinema. He was repeatedly invited to this role, because he played the most authentic, the audience believed him and loved this image. The footage from the film, where Ulyanov played a powerful military commander, became the basis for the film "The Great General Georgy Zhukov."

This tape, one of the few, has not been forgotten in our time. It was completely renovated in 2002. The work was carried out at the main studio, which previously took part in the filming, at Mosfilm. She was engaged in high-level specialists. After that, the epic was rewritten on laser discs and sold in the series "Legends of Soviet Cinema". Meanwhile, not all the scenes have entered the new edition of the epic. During the restoration of the tape, a part of the episodes from the fourth part was lost. Seoul's height, which occurred at night, could be seen only by those who purchased the German edition of the picture.

In 2011, "First Channel" became interested in the tape. His specialists were "painted" a lot of military films, and "Liberation" was no exception. The motion picture changed its mode - it became widescreen and completely color. Significantly improved image quality. We saw an updated version of many residents of our country, in 2011 the channel not only updated the tape, but also demonstrated it as one of the films about the war years.