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Peculiarities of the National Hunt
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Wikipedia article
'Peculiarities of the National Hunt' is a 1995 Russian comedy film. It focuses on a young Finnish man named Raivo who dreams to analyze a classical Russian hunt so he engages with a group of real Russian hunters only to discover that real Russian hunting trips mostly consist of outdoors drinking in the woods.
The film was written and directed by Aleksandr Rogozhkin whilst also being distributed by Lenfilm. It is a slapstick humor type of comedy and became a nationwide box office success almost immediately in Russia. It won the Nika Award and Kinotavr awards and was followed by several other sequel films with "Peculiarities" starting off each of their titles.
Background
The act of hunting in Russia has occurred for centuries. It first started with indigenous peoples of Russia. It became more common in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries with many imperial hunts and hunting clubs taking place across imperialistic Russia. The hunts would target a variety of animals but would in many cases they would hunt for wolves and bears.
Plot
The plot follows a young Finnish man named Raivo who is in Russia to study the mannerisms and details of a typical Russian hunt. He is taken in by a former Russian general, Ivolgin, and his band for a hunt in a rural Russian forest. The members of his band are quite eccentric in their own ways and one of them is an exceptionally outrageous woodsman by the name of Kuzmich.
Coming in with prior misconceptions of how the hunt will go about, picturing an eloquent and royal hunt akin to those of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries pre-Revolution Russia, but young Raivo quickly learns that this is far from his current reality, instead he finds himself in some rather boozy misadventures that take up much of this group's time.
They have many run-ins with many individuals in the area. Some of the events that transpired during these alcohol-related adventures include having a bear sneak into their bathhouse and terrorize many of the main characters for a bit of time, a police officer loses his pistol, Lev blowing up a grenade, missing cows, stolen Police UAZ's, and meetups with the milk girls. Another side story occurs when the group attempts to transport a cow in a bomber for a bottle of vodka. Stories like these occur constantly throughout a vast portion of the movie and contribute to its slapstick humor elements.
As the movie progresses, it becomes apparent that the hunt is not the main event for these individuals and rather just something they will get around to eventually.
In contrast, Raivo envisions a hunt inspired by pre-revolutionary Russia where the hunt is well organized and requires the help of many people, hunting dogs, and horses to achieve a proper hunt. In this imaginary hunt, the characters speak French, are classy, and are after a giant wolf. These scenes serve to juxtapose the ideal hunt from the chaotic flurry that is occurring before Raivo.
But the group does attempt a hunt which is only found with odd events and findings. Some of these events include a pineapple being picked from a hedgerow, Earth being visible in the sky, and a missing cow thought to be dead coming to life and attempting to run away.
As the movie ends, the cast sits around a campfire, and the two worlds of the movie mesh to end the scene and movie.
Themes
The main theme in 'Peculiarities of the National Hunt' is expectations vs. reality. The main character is met with disappointment when his attempt at a "Hunt" goes in a glaringly different direction than its historical predecessors. This comedic film lacks a sense of deep meaning but provides the audience with entertainment.
Generationalism is an important theme in the movie because it shows how serious the cultural difference in the past was as opposed to the present. The movie goes to show that hallmark cultural events and activities may never go away but may be done or celebrated in a completely different manner with each generation.
National Characteristics is also a big theme in the film. There is a lot of camera work and direction that emphasizes the tradition of a hunt and it gives good insight into how the imperial past differs from the present. The imperial past and the post-imperial present are juxtaposed in a way that really contrasts the two time periods.
Reception
* IMDB: 7.5
* Russian Film Hub: 7.5
* Letterboxd: 3.5/5
The movie was well received in Russia and was a box office success there. Critical reviews in foreign countries were a mixed bag of mostly positive reviews with some being partially negative. This may be attributed to a multitude of different factors, maybe involving differences in culture or difficulties in foreign distribution.
Box office release
The movie was released in 1995 as a comedy and garnered lots of attention which led to the making of its sequels, 'Peculiarities of the National Fishing', 'The Peculiarities of the National Hunt Under Winter Conditions', and 'The Peculiarities of the National Politics'.
Awards
* Karlovy Vary International Film Festival Nominee, "Crystal Globe", Aleksandr Rogozhkin in 1995
* Nika Award, "Best Picture" in 1996
* Nika Award, "Best Director" - Aleksandr Rogozhkin in 1996
* Nika Award, "Best Actor" - Aleksey Buldakov in 1996
* Nika Award Nominee, "Best Screenplay" - Aleksandr Rogozhkin in 1996
* Sochi Open Russian Film Festival, "Grand Prize of the Festival" in 1995
Cast
* Aleksey Buldakov (Role: General)
* Viktor Bychkov (Role: Kuzmich)
* Semyon Strugachyov (Role: Lyova Soloveychik)
* Sergei Guslinsky (Role: Semyonov)
* Sergey Russkin (Role: Sergei Olegovich)
* Ville Haapasalo (Role: Raivo)
* Sergey Kupriyanov (Role: Kachalov)
* Igor Dobryakov (Role: Nobleman)
* Yuri Makusinsky (Role: Hunter)
* Boris Cherdyntsev (Role: Commandant)
* Aleksandr Zavyalov (Role: Ensign)
* Aleksey Poluyan (Role: Zaderzhannyy)
* Igor Sergeev: (Role: Count)
* Zoya Buryak: (Role: Milkmaid)
* Saara Hedlund: (Role: Milkmaid)
References
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