Hello children.
Do you want some money?
Yes.
- What are you doing? - We pick up bottles.
And then? What do you do?
- Does it work? - He doesn't know.
What about the bottles?
I give them.
- Take this! - Thanks!
So, where do you find them?
We find them...
And we give them. Each bottle is 25 rubles.
And how much do you guys make?
300 rubles per day.
Is it enough to buy food?
Yes.
He owes me 200 rubles!
Ok, ok.
My name is Kanevsky and I'm a film director.
I'm searching for some smart boys like you.
That can do anything.
"Freeze Die..." was on TV.
Pachka Nazarov plays the main character.
- Did you watch it? - Yes, I did.
Do you guys know some older boys...
their meet up places?
Yes, we know.
Can we go there?
No, they beat us and take our money.
C'mon, let's go!
Wait, give me at least...
- ...the address. - Will you tell them?
I will tell no one! I give you my word!
Are you sure?
We're going.
What are you filming?
I'm looking for a hero...
...some independent boys.
There's some here!
- That can do everything? - Yes.
I have a friend, Julia.
How old are you?
- Nine. I'm eight.
I'm a hero!
- And you? - Almost thirteen.
You're a big girl. Can you guide us?
It's possible.
Your mother wont be mad? It will be quick.
She wont say anything.
- So, let's go. - Let's go!
The children...
Do your parents know that you smoke?
Are you sure?
How do you buy cigarettes?
We make some money!
How?
We wash some cars, thing like that...
...and we steal too.
It's my mother.
Yes, her mother gives to her.
Before, she used to steal.
She used to steal too?
One time I stole 500 rubles for my mother.
One time I stole 400 rubles for my mother...
and one day I saw a car and I broke into it.
I haven't nothing to do.
With my friends...
we stole 20.000 rubles and the stereo.
Damn it!
Here it is, we arrived. These are my friends.
What the fuck they are doing here?
They came to film you guys!
We don't give a fuck!
Fuck, listen to me!
What are they going to film?
Tell me about you.
Stay back!
Shit, one time I was on a motorcycle...
...I was running away from the cops. What about you?
If I tell you, you will shit your pants.
You, you gonna piss your pants.
You gonna shit yourself!
Hey boys, how do you make money here?
We wash cars, we mow lawns, we cheat.
- What? - Ok, that's enough.
Tell me something interesting that happened in your life.
Pacha, tell him...
Ok! Well...
at the Dostoievski street, we wanted to steal...
a wing mirror... Who was there?
That time?
- You weren't there! - Are you kidding?
I was there!
So you tell him!
Tell him, I don't remember exactly what happened!
You tell him, he doesn't remember well.
- Well, I was on a motorcycle... - Shut the...
We were at the Dostoievski street
with my friends,
we saw a wind mirror...
we wanted to steal it...
...Sacha, take it off!
And then?
We wanted to steal it so we stole it.
Then a police car stopped.
We started to run to the alley...
They all ran away but I stayed...
to see if the cops would run to the alley.
They ran...
After us.
Well, I jumped to a little garden...
and he, he jumped into the dumpster!
I really dove into the trash, like that!
They got the others guys, but we escaped.
They released them the next day.
And you, redhead?
Shit, I ran away.
On time I...
Let the redhead talk!
With him, shit, we went into the dumpsters,
we wanted to steal a wind mirror...
...we took it, then the cops arrived...
we ran to the subway.
Fuck, the subway security guard arrived:
"If you open it you're fucked."
I told him: "Listen, cop, go call the police station..."
He slapped me.
I told him:
"Never do this again, you jerk!"
The cops called the paddy wagon.
I was there, he never said...
When the subway guy hit him,
he told him: "fuck off and die"
which in russian means: go fuck yourself...
- That's a good one. - It's normal!
- Do you work? - Yes.
How much do you make per day?
Nearly 200 bucks.
- And the work? - It's great!
- Where do you guys study? - At school.
Which year?
- 5th. - Primary school.
How old are you?
- Eleven. - Thirteen
The older ones tax your money?
- Yes, sometimes. - They are all idiots.
What do you do with the money? Do you hide it?
No, we save it.
- And mommy? - We give some to her!
What else?
I bought an Adidas jacket for 7000.
What about the future?
We want to be racketeers.
- Do you have guns? - Yes.
And steal?
- Do you guys steal? - Yes, we do.
It's ok to steal?
- No. - Yes!
Someone has already stolen something?
- Yes. - What?
A chocolate bar!
And what if they catch you?
We go to the reformatory!
Tell something good.
We live well.
How is that? Where do you live?
- At Fontanka street. - Illiitch passage.
How is over there?
- Big! - We have two rooms.
We have three!
- Everybody is happy? - Yes.
- Can you sing something? - Yes.
What?
"In the forest, a fir grows..."
No, something else... C'mon!
A racketeer song!
C'mon, are you shy?
What song?
It doesn't matter, c'mon...
Stop to hesitate like that!
"We met this bitch,"
"we just look at her"
"it was uplifting. She was really wonderful."
"She inspired me to take her shirt off"
"but this isn't the point."
"It seemed that all my friends..."
"had already slept with her!"
"Sex, sex, it was good..."
"...without stop..."
Ok, that's enough!
"Once upon a time there was a black cat..."
"everybody hated it..."
"But if the girl cat doesn't love the boy cat"
"this is not really the problem!"
"A black cat that cross the street,"
"we know well that's bad luck,"
"but for now it's incongruous:"
"only the cat doesn't know happiness!"
"Everyday the cat comes and goes..."
"and search for his unfortunate kittens."
"But if the girl cat doesn't love the boy cat"
That's all!
22! Let's go!
Hey boys, wait!
Who are you?
Where are you from? From the orphanage?
No, we're from the Studios.
- Do you live here? - Yes.
And why are you hiding here?
So, can we talk? C'mon!
We talk about what?
What do you do here, you there?
Do you have parents?
We have, but you know, there's some problems.
Like what?
They don't let us live!
It's a pain in the neck!
They drink...
she brings home every kind of man.
What do you do?
We steal!
I stole from a old man...
I stole his watch.
I hit him. I will show you...
Here it is!
He didn't defend himself?
No, he was drunk.
I hit him in the head!
We fought and cracked two bottles.
There's still some cracks there...
I will show you.
They are somewhere... here it is!
We broke them...
We got drunk...
we partied here...
What about work?
- It's awful! It's sucks! - We prefer to steal!
How do you escape from the cops?
That's easy!
God gave us legs to do that.
We run like rabbits!
And you there, what exactly do you do?
What do I do? I rob cars.
The little boy there, raise your head! C'mon!
He's one of these thieves...
He uses a knife...
Show it to us!
...he do some lock picking,
He opened a car. A taxicab.
- What's your name? - Serioja.
- And your friend? - Sacha.
They are you real names?
- No, nicknames. - Mine's real.
There are girls here?
Some whores come and go.
Normally, you live here...
but where do you eat?
We pick the leftovers from cafes...
If we find something, we eat it.
Sometimes we buy it.
So that's what we do!
If we have money, we eat.
Do you guys get along?
Well, if someone do something wrong...
we fight, but after we apologize.
This idiot here, he fought the others boys.
- How old are you? - Twelve.
And the little one there?
He's ten, this little shit!
Where's your mom?
What are you looking at?
Raise your head. What's the matter?
Fuck, look at him!
My knife is broken!
I will fix it later,
look at me. Your name's Serioja?
Do you have parents?
- Where are they? - They drink a lot!
So you live here, that's it?
Are you happy here?
Yes.
It's better here?
There's many, always!
I lived at Grajdanka street,
I had two dogs,
a bull-terrier and a rotweiler,
So I kill for money!
I can't do that!
- And you, can you kill? - Yes!
If I kill him, can you pay big money?
What's suicide?
According to church, it's the worst sin!
One by one. Stop at the door.
POLICE POST
Do you think they will say anything?
You know, they killed my father with an axe,
they scalped him.
We buried him.
Why did they kill him?
Well, he and his friend sold a TV,
and he had a lot of money.
Then he bought some alcohol,
and some cake.
He bought a lot of things to us…
It was my birthday
and he bought me
a cake, something like that…
he brought it home.
The other man broke into
auntie Galia’s house, she’s mommy and daddy’s friend,
he broke the door,
he broke in at the same time daddy was there,
and then... daddy didn’t see him,
the man hit him with his axe.
The neighbour went out running at the stairs,
she needed to buy some cigarettes,
she saw someone lying down,
she was afraid to go to the door,
she told mommy: “I think…”
“your man is over there.”
Mommy started to run,
it was true, it was him.
She was afraid to call the cops,
she call an ambulance,
and the neighbour, she called the cops from her home,
they arrived minutes after,
the cops said: “we will turn him.”
His face was a little flayed,
but he had two bottles with him that wasn’t broken,
one was in his pocket,
the other one was somewhere.
When they put him on the stretcher,
he said: “kid, kid”.
There was a bottle sticking out…
Mommy said: “Can I take it?”
and she found another one.
When we buried my father
after we finished it,
we were arriving at home,
mommy gave the bottles to the driver
and mommy said: “He will drink to your father’s memory,”
“he will be remembered!”
RECEPTION AND SORTING CENTER FOR YOUNG OFFENDERS
What’s your name?
How old are you?
I’m ten.
What did you do?
I robbed some stores and I drowned a boy.
To death?
Because of what?
He said he was the world champion,
we wanted verify this, I pushed him, he drowned.
And now?
I will go from prison to prison.
How much time here?
Here, according to the law, 60 days. It’s the maximum.
The minimum is 15 days.
But we can stay for 30 or 45 days,
but, legally, it’s 60.
If nobody comes to pick you, they transfer you.
If you don’t have a guardian, they keep you for 100 days…
Waiting for the detention center.
And you, who are you?
My name is Anton, I’m 12.
I’m here because I made mistakes,
I stole some wheels, some cars, with my friends.
Hey little girl, what’s your name?
How old are you?
- Two. - No, three!
Are you alone here?
- With whom? - My little brother.
Where’s he, the brother?
Tell us why you’re here.
Mommy killed the little one and daddy left.
Killed how?
With a hammer.
How old was he?
Five.
How for long will she stay in prison?
I don’t know.
They send her to jail and you to here.
And you little boy, how old are you?
Me?
No, you!
He?
Roma, they’re speaking to you!
Are you all thieves?
I don’t steal, I’m a gangster!
- What’s your name? - Vika.
What did you do?
Well, my mother sold me. Then they brought me here.
They wanted to drug me.
My mother drinks, she go out with some guys,
she sold me.
To the men?
Yes, and here I am in a “priyomnik”.
I ran way the first time,
I tried the second time, but it didn’t work.
They brought me back.
But I will do everything to not come back home.
I don’t want to come back.
Do you mean… you don’t love your mom?
No, I hate her.
- How old are you? - I’m 14.
How long have she been doing it?
Since I was 13, since 92.
She sold me for a bottle of vodka!
REFORM SCHOOL FOR YOUNG PEOPLE FROM AGES 11 TO 15
12 years old,
I stole,
I drank, I smoked,
I've sniffed glue,
lots of stuff!
I’m 13,
I drank
smoked, sniffed, stole,
I skipped school, I burgled.
I’m 13,
I drank,
I didn't smoke,
I stole,
I sniffed,
I burgled.
I’m 13,
I drank, I smoked,
I burgled, I stole bikes and got here.
What isn't here
on this land
we got a strange ticket
we, the children of the 20th century!
To me, everything's alright!
The heavenly vaults, the deep oceans
we will unveil their secrets.
They transferred me from the orphanage,
I don’t have any parent.
They got me because I ran away.
One time I tried to steal a car.
I broke into an apartment, I made a big mess.
Look at me, look at you.
- Do you have any weaknesses? - No.
You don’t, really?
Our life is interesting and cheerful
but what we really,
“really want to…”
I’m here because I stole cars.
I use a thin knife to open the door.
If I can’t open it, I broke the window,
I open the door and I get in.
I take away what I can found, money,
the stereo and everything. They got me because of that!
I don’t think I have any weakness.
Look at me as I told you to.
Look at you a little longer.
Look into your eyes!
It will be just a glimpse
a glimpse of the next century
to see what fate…
is waiting for you
waiting for you, human.
I really like here, It’s a good school,
here the adults treat the children really well
I used to burgle, but now I stopped with it.
Here, I live a normal life,
they keep us here from 11 to 15 years old.
After I'll go to a secondary technical school.
PRISON FOR TEENAGERS BETWEEN 16 AND 18 YEARS OLD
I’m 16. I've been stealing since I was 10.
I'm here at the Colony of Rehabilitation Through Work
by the article 144, paragraph 3,
it’s apartment burglary,
with a sentence of two years and six months.
My mother spent time in prison.
I stole for the first time when they arrested her.
After that, I started to do every kind of burglary.
I was on probation
by the child protective services,
I went to two “priyomniks”.
After I was 15 years old,
they sent me…
for the first time to the psychiatric hospital nº 9.
I used to steal with my friends.
I never did it alone.
We stole some stores,
newsstands, apartments,
garages.
We stole gold, money,
things that we could sell,
some cloths.
We spent the night at our friends houses.
It was the good life!
The good life?
It was hard.
I ran away all the time from the orphanage.
No matter how hard I try, I can’t understand it,
it’s a completely diferent prison, I can’t believe it,
we can say it’s like a factory.
Tell me, your sentence…
it isn’t the first time?
It’s my second time.
Your child was born here?
Yes, when they arrested me,
I was four months pregnant.
I spent the the rest of my pregnancy here
and the gave birth here,
well, not really here, but outside,
they took me to the hospital under police escort.
After that, they took me to the infirmary,
I stayed there for two years.
It was her birthday when they took her away,
they put her under tutelage.
Now she lives with a good family,
a religious family!
You all become religious people.
Some priests used to come to the infirmary,
I accepted Jesus,
I had faith and stopped smoking that day.
But you committed a serious crime!
Complicity in murder.
A really horrible murder.
To kill a girl with an iron bar…
Yes, he did hit her.
I didn’t help him with that,
but I gave her some sleeping pills,
that’s all. He killed her at night.
Are you sure it wasn’t jealousy?
I really don’t know.
And your first sentence?
Article 146.
I see. You’re a real criminal!
So it’s really dangerous to be with you.
You really are a tough woman…
To kill it's something banal to you…
Well, our women are really tough!
So do you think you can raise your child?
Of course,
I changed, I believe in God,
and she’s being raised by a religious family,
she goes to the church.
How do you say “amen”?
Anem!
She goes to the church, she prays…
And where’s mommy? Do you know where's mommy living?
What’s the name of this little house?
Yes, show how they lock up mommy.
It’s the prison?
I will wash cars with my friends.
Life’s hard.
And grandma don’t have any money because she drinks a lot.
We’ve sniffed some glue.
How did you guys do that?
It’s the stuff you find in stores,
but they don’t sell glue to children,
so we got it from some guys.
And after that?
We bought a plastic bag…
we went to the woods, we poured in the glue
and we sniffed it.
We put the bag like that…
And we had some hallucinations.
And how was that? What did you see?
There was a lot of rabbits jumping.
One time a eye pulled out of my head…
It stayed hanging from my head…
How your life will be from now on?
It will be ok.
I can survive.
Would you commit a crime, kill someone,
stab someone, to get some money?
No, I saw…
You saw your mother in jail…
and you want to live normally?
Do you want to stop sniffing?
He saw the solitary cell…
When I learned about it, I spoke with the deputy director,
They invited him to come,
they showed him,
the cells where the young ones stay,
same age as him,
they showed him how the boys are welcomed,
how they are punished,
if they misbehave
when they’re already here,
so he thought about it.
Rowan, small rowan
why are you swing
over the fence
with the head down…
Across the road
by the wide river
stands a big oak
lonely as well…
Ah, if I, rowan
If I was going to the oak
I wouldn’t be swinging
nor my head would be down…
Say “good morning”!
In charge of the 100th cell, ready for inspection!
What’s your name?
How old are you?
Sixteen.
And why are you here? Where are you now?
In preventive detention. 32, Liebedeva Street.
In Saint Petersburg?
- Why are you here? - Murder.
Who did you kill?
But I didn’t it alone!
My accomplice and I strangled a girl.
He was your friend?
Just someone I know.
Why did you do it?
We needed to enter in the apartment.
Are you pretty?
I don’t know, is not for me to say this.
Do the boys like you?
Ask them.
Do they talk to you about love?
Sure. My accomplice is my boyfriend.
Do you know any song?
No, I don’t want to sing!
- Don’t you know? - I don’t want to!
- Why not? - What’s the point?
So, tell me how did you kill her?
We strangled her.
And after that?
We did a lot of things.
Tell me more. Don’t be shy!
We hit her in the head, them my accomplice
we strangled her.
Did you hit her with what?
With a bat.
But he loved her, didn’t he?
- She wasn’t pretty? - She was.
So she was...
What’s your name?
- Are you also a criminal? - Article 146.
- What’s that? - Assault
Who did you assault?
A girl.
- Did you robbed her? - We undressed her.
Full naked?
- How old are you? - 15 years.
Aren't you afraid here?
Me? Yes.
- Of what? - Well…
Is it unpleasant?
- And what your mom said? - “Why did you do that?”
That's all?
Lena, what songs do you like?
Foreign songs.
Do you like russian songs?
Not too much.
Would you sing a song for us?
The three together!
I don't know...
Why are you here?
They locked me here for rape.
But now they reclassified it to aggression.
Are you also a criminal?
Don’t you have any regrets?
I won’t do that anymore!
- How old are you? - 17 years.
Look at you, they must give you all a lot of food here.
- Are you happy here? - Not too much.
Do you fight here?
And you, what’s your name?
- Why are you here? - Murder.
- How old are you? - 17.
- Who did you kill? - A man.
- With what? - A knife.
- How many stabs? - Just one in the liver.
Who are you?
What’s your last name?
A criminal too?
Article 102, murderer.
You guys are like a gang!
- Who did you kill? - Two woman.
Why?
I was drunk!
- With what? - Knives and a rope.
They were together?
- How old are you? - 17 years.
And why did you do that? For money?
Nothing important.
How's that?
We took some money…
Didn’t you like them?
They didn’t resist?
They didn’t scream?
And how many times did you…?
I stabbed 50 times one of them,
and the other one, 20 stabs. And some broken ribs.
They were young?
Normal.
- Like these girls here? - Older.
Would you murder them?
For a good reason, yes.
If you knew why…
Look, you have Julia here,
she’s also a master of this art,
she can teach you some things.
No I won’t!
So, Julia, tell me please…
What was the name of the girl?
Do you remember the name?
No? And did she fight back when you…
Yes.
Did you… how did you do it?
I held her while my accomplice strangled her.
I helped her too.
Did you use your own hands?
Yes.
Him, he cut his victims in pieces.
We did hit her too!
Well, nobody ever tasted human meat?
We did.
Who? You? Really?
- Is it good? - Yes, it’s ok.
How it taste?
Ah, a little sweet.
- Cooked or raw? - Raw!
And what part exactly?
The liver, the heart.
Not bad at all, as a snack!
So, you’re all murderers?
- I’m not! - Me neither!
And you there, are you here for murder?
Who did you kill?
A man and a woman?
Are you upset?
I’m not. “The upset ones are always blamed for something.”
So, do you remember?
What?
I prefer not to talk.
Tell us anything.
Nothing new. I'm here. Like everyone else.
What did you do?
I fucked up!
Who are you?
Me? Pavel Nazarov.
Two-time winner at Cannes?
“Freeze Die Come to Life” and “An Independent Life”.
Did you watch the second one?
I wanted to watch it.
I’ll show it to you. Tell us about you.
What do you want to know?
Ask me questions.
When did you start your independent life?
Five years ago.
It started on New Year's eve.
I drank with some friends and that was it.
And smoking?
Same thing, I started like six years ago.
Where did you live?
Live? I hanged around!
How many cars did you steal?
A lot!
What are you afraid of?
Me? Afraid?
Ok, so tell me the number…
one or two digits?
Maybe three!
I love mechanics…
So what are you doingo here?
Are you a criminal now?
No, forget it.
No? Looks at these guys.
I don’t hang out with them.
- All murderers. - Not me!
No, of course.
Aren’t you afraid of them?
They’re human beings.
They will fucking strangle you!
They’re all professionals!
“Murderer” doesn’t mean anything,
here we can see how they really are.
I mean...
What they did outside… but here is different.
They're different here.
There are some good guys here?
Of course!
Don’t they play dirty tricks?
This doesn't work here.
The prison, that’s all. It’s your punishment.
Will we do a movie together?
Sure! But will you hire me?
Of course!
Behave yourself and everything will be fine.
- Did you write the script? - It’s done…
What about a song? Can you all sing together?
A mixed choir!
Go for it!
Fucking freedom…
Sitting on my bench like a king on his throne…
I dream of getting my dark bread ratio.
And my merry laugh was always popular…
and my life broke like a shell of nuts.
Fuck you guys!
Can I go in?
Why?
Just over here, on the edge.
So, do I tell you about our guys?
As long as you want!
They’re very strong.
They will never be lost.
Take Michka, he can always win a card game against anyone.
Kecha, he can pickpocket his own mother.
Some people are real criminals,
but for me they aren’t human beings.
For me they are crazy people.
But… don’t think we’re stupid.
Michka, I’ll join you!
But if we love life?
He who loves life will not kill!
Good morning!
Give us this day
our daily bread.
And forgive us
our sins
for we also forgive
everyone
who sins against us.
And don't let us
yield to temptation.
But rescue us
from evil.
Are you all in Sunday school?
Are you all baptised?
Yes, of course.
Do you make your prayer before bed?
You always answer together!
What’s your name?
Ira, before bed, do you…
Do you have a favorite vow?
- You don't know? - None.
You just want to live and that’s all.
Why do man need strength?
It depends what kind of strength.
Physical or moral?
Or spiritual!
We say that “with strength, we don’t need intelligence.”
And when is pain useful?
To be better person.
Pain helps to understand.
Without what is it impossible to exist on Earth?
Without prayer.
Without punishment.
- Without love. - Without regrets.
Impunity is the worst of sins…
because when man feels unpunished
he can do whatever he wants:
kill, steal, destroy temples…
The worst sin is dejection.
When man…
stops waiting the help of God… this is everything.
So, everything’s gonna be alright?
Of course, one day everything’s gonna be alright!
Do you sing so all can be well?
Come here, let’s talk!
Our Petersburg, Petrograd, Leningrad…
it became Petersburg-Petrograd.
Here I saw the tourist
and the Muscovite Arbat.
What worries you, girl?
With the eyes wide open.
Why instead of your bright smile
there’s a shining tear on your face?
Maybe you love him
with all your soul
but he doesn’t even look at you
he mocks you.
Don’t be sad
do not shed tears in vain
another love
will come one day
and even stronger.
Well… I finished my studies.
Now I rest, I listen to music.
It’s freedom!
From beyond the wooded island, to the river wide and free
proudly sailed the arrow-breasted
the decorated ships appear
the ships of Cossack yeomanry.
On the first is Stenka Razin
with his princess by his side
drunken holds in marriage reveals
with his beauteous young bride.
Good morning!
They said that we could talk at the “Scar”.
Who told you?
I’m a film director, we’re making a movie about the young ones.
Can we ask you a question?
We don’t care about the cinema!
It’s only one question.
People say that we’re living…
in a difficult time, there’s a lot of tension…
a lot of people are very negative about it.
Why they think like that?
At what period do we live now?
Well… post-communism.
It’s the end of the century!
The autumn of the millennium, get it?
Say we…
What happens in autumn? The harvest!
It’s what our ancestors sowed, the good and the evil!
Tell me, please…
they told us that you have your organization…
Who told you that?
You have your guys and they initiate the new ones
in downtown Saint Petersburg.
Sometimes even girls…
There's no doubt you can answer it better than this…
What’s the “rackett”?
The “rackett”?
It’s an agreement… commercial, voluntary.
Under your dictation?
Why mine? It’s life that dictates it!
It’s possible to see, even with only one eye, how you
Here is the center of Petersburg!
We were two in the cabin
you were beside the small window.
The sea was twinkling blue
just like your eyes.
And if the sea is angry, sing
and the hurricane unleashed
come see me, my teammate
I’ll give you back your love.
Don’t love the sea, girls!
But do love the sailors instead!
The sea will bring you pain
the sailor will bring you love.
I don't fear the waves nor the wind
I sail into my only mother in this world
with my white vessel.
Micha, can I sleep at your place?
My mother drinks a lot.
Why not. You can sleep there.
Go ahead!
Tell me, I saw the article in the newspaper.
“The Saint Petersburg News”?
So, how are you?
Fine.
Are your exams over?
Tell me about your life.
Everything’s fine, Pacha.
It was only when I was sure that I decided to come to see you.
I know why you’re here, how long you’ll stay here…
Don't worry, it will be over.
So, are you happy?
Everything’s going well, I’m happy.
Do you still want to act?
Something artistic.
Yes, actually I decided to take care of that.
Maybe I will be accepted by the Film School…
I already have some experience,
they offered me to study there.
It was a film director that offered you this?
Yes, it was at Lenfilm, during an interview…
I mean, they said to me: “go take some classes”…
since I wasn’t a professional yet…
I understand it, sure.
I heard about some offers by the americans…
Well, you could do it if you wanted it…
You know, as long as the man creates…
I think he shouldn’t worry about his future…
he won’t die nor he will be lost.
In fact, in Russia, we have a lot of talented people.
Our country was always know by its great artists…
its composers…
Yes, it’s the “good bread”, like we use to say…
We can keep living.
But you see, before it was… Now life is like this.
Half went abroad…
to try to find work over there…
I don’t know what they will find there.
They all used to say: “The great russian people”
and now, no more great russian people.
There’s no more than 178 nationalities
that speak one common language: russian.
Everything is very complicated.
Yes, it’s a hard times for all of you.
Why “for all of you”? It’s for us!
I mean “for everybody”!
You all have your own world here, your own laws…
I have such a nostalgia of that time
when we were filming “Freeze Die Come to Life”.
I think about it sometimes.
Good or bad memories?
I only think about the good things!
Very often I remember about Vladivostok.
I remember about it too!
Do you know what’s my favourite part of “Freeze Die...”?
When we walk along the rails.
The song… I learned it on the guitar.
Really?
Too bad you don’t have a guitar…
Didn’t you forget the lyrics?
No!
So, sing it.
I can’t remember it…
Well, we sing it together!
They love each other since childhood
And even if they were just children
They often swore to each other:
We will never forget each other!
Pacha, what is punishment to you?
It’s like a blow to self-esteem.
The Russians have this self-respect and we keep losing it.
and we will always lose it.
We can’t remake human nature.
Why?
Free, we always have the impression that everything is gonna be alright,
that we will never get caught.
When you’re in jail, you have a lot to think about.
About yourself, life…
Punishment is, like…
like the baths, there you clean yourself,
here you purify yourself… It’s a self-purification.
You analyze every detail about yourself,
it’s really something!
So, for you, do man must fear someone?
Man must fear himself.
He must look at himself,
and there he finds the abyss of good and evil.
And you, do you exist for the good or for the evil?
Nature made its work, everything comes in two.
We haves two eyes, two arms…
But man only has one heart.
Yes, but with two ventricles!
Yes, it’s also true…
I came here
just to see you today
and, evidently,
I was cold that evening.
Walking I told myself
that you would let me cross
the threshold of this door
where you once waited for me.
I came and I rang
your husband opened the door
He said to me: sorry,
I have some friends over
I smiled, I shook your hands,
both of you
but I kept holding
your hand for a little longer.
Your husband kept staring
at you, at me
staring, staring
staring...
What do they want?
They want to know what is this place.
What was here before.
You don’t know for what they use this place?
They used to make some heads fly here, to every criminal.
Do you know what’s called?
So why are you talking about it?
It was the pillory,
they didn't just decapitate them, they cut them in four too.
"In four”?
Like that… and the head was into the gutter.
Could you have become an executioner?
Executioner? I don’t know.
It would depend who I would need to execute. One of ours, no.
But the others, yes, the criminals…
Yes, we can execute the criminals!
I bet you couldn't do it!
And how could I prove it!
Go a little closer to them.
Hey guys, can I ask you a question?
Yes, you can. What question?
- Plese, be frank! - Yes.
I will give 5000 rubles to the one who will answer frankly.
Only 5000 rubles?
If it’s not enough I’ll give more!
My question is:
“Who among you, in the name of…”
“the purest principle, would be able to…”
“kill your own father?”
Listen very carefully!