Nikita Mikhalkov
Encyclopedia
Nikita Sergeyevich Mikhalkov is a Soviet
and Russian filmmaker, actor
, and head of the Russian Cinematographers' Union.
Mikhalkov was born in Moscow
into the distinguished, artistic Mikhalkov family. His great grandfather was the imperial governor of Yaroslavl
, whose mother was a Galitzine
princess. Nikita's father, Sergei Mikhalkov, was best known as writer of children's literature, although he also wrote lyrics to his country's national anthem on three different occasions spanning nearly 60 years—two different sets of lyrics used for the Soviet national anthem
, and the current lyrics of the Russian national anthem
. Nikita's mother, the poetess Natalia Konchalovskaya, was the daughter of the avant-garde
artist Pyotr Konchalovsky
and granddaughter of another outstanding painter, Vasily Surikov
. Nikita's older brother is the filmmaker Andrei Konchalovsky
, primarily known for his collaboration with Andrei Tarkovsky
and his own Hollywood action films, such as Runaway Train
and Tango & Cash
.
Mikhalkov studied acting at the children's studio of the Moscow Art Theatre
and later at the Shchukin School of the Vakhtangov Theatre. While still a student, he appeared in Georgi Daneliya
's film I Step Through Moscow
(1964) and his brother Andrei Konchalovsky's film Home of the Gentry (1969). He was soon on his way to becoming a star of the Soviet stage and cinema.
, teacher to his brother and Andrei Tarkovsky
. He directed his first short film in 1968, I'm Coming Home, and another for his graduation, A Quiet Day at the End of the War in 1970. Mikhalkov had appeared in over twenty films, including his brother's Uncle Vanya (1972), before he co-wrote, directed and starred in his first feature, At Home Among Strangers
in 1974, an Ostern
set just after the 1920s civil war in Russia
.
Mikhalkov established an international reputation with his second feature, A Slave of Love (1976). Set in 1917, it followed the efforts of a film crew to make a silent melodrama
in a resort town while the Revolution
rages around them. The film, based upon the last days of Vera Kholodnaya
, was highly acclaimed upon its release in the U.S.
Mikhalkov's next film, An Unfinished Piece for Player Piano (1977) was adapted by Mikhalkov from Chekhov
's early play, Platonov, and won the first prize at the San Sebastian Film Festival. In 1978, while starring in his brother's epic film Siberiade
, Mikhalkov made Five Evenings, a love story about a couple separated by World War II
, who meet again after eighteen years. Mikhalkov's next film, Oblomov (1980), with Oleg Tabakov
in the title role, is based on Ivan Goncharov
's classic novel about a lazy young nobleman who refuses to leave his bed. Family Relations (1981) is a comedy
about a provincial woman in Moscow dealing with the tangled relationships of her relatives. Without Witnesses (1983) tracks a long night's conversation between a woman (Irina Kupchenko) and her ex-husband (Mikhail Ulyanov
) when they are accidentally locked in a room.
In the early 1980s, Mikhalkov resumed his acting career, appearing in Eldar Ryazanov
's immensely popular Station for Two (1982) and A Cruel Romance (1984). At that period, he also played Henry Baskerville in the Soviet screen version
of The Hound of the Baskervilles
. He also starred in many of his own films, including At Home Among Strangers
, A Slave of Love, and An Unfinished Piece for Player Piano.
Incorporating several short stories by Chekhov, Dark Eyes (1987) stars Marcello Mastroianni
as an old man who tells a story of a romance he had when he was younger, a woman he has never been able to forget. The film was highly praised, and Mastroianni received the Best Actor Prize at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival
and an Academy Award
nomination for his performance.
Mikhalkov's next film, Urga
(1992, a.k.a. Close to Eden), set in the little known world of the Mongols
, received the Golden Lion
at the Venice Film Festival
and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
. Mikhalkov's Anna: 6-18 (1993) documents his daughter Anna as she grows from childhood to maturity.
Mikhalkov's most famous production to date, Burnt by the Sun
(1994), was steeped in the paranoid atmosphere of Joseph Stalin
's Great Terror
. The film received the Grand Prize
at Cannes
and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
, among many other honours. To date, Burnt by the Sun remains the highest grossing film to come out of the former Soviet Union
and filming for a sequel is under way.
, was designed as a patriotic extravaganza for domestic consumption. It featured Julia Ormond
and Oleg Menshikov
, who regularly appears in Mikhalkov's films, in the leading roles. The director himself appeared as Tsar Alexander III of Russia
.
The film received the Russia State Prize and spawned rumours about Mikhalkov's presidential ambitions. The director, however, chose to administer the Russian cinema industry. Despite much opposition from rival directors, he was elected the President of the Russian Society of Cinematographists and has managed the Moscow Film Festival since 2000. He also set the Russian Academy Golden Eagle Award
in opposition to the traditional Nika Award
.
In 2005, Mikhalkov resumed his acting career, starring in three brand-new movies - The Councillor of State, a Fandorin
mystery film which broke the Russian box-office records, Zhmurki
, a noir-drenched comedy about the Russian Mafia
and Krzysztof Zanussi
's Persona non grata.
On September 8, 2007, Mikhalkov’s film 12
, a modern adaptation of Sidney Lumet
's court drama Twelve Angry Men, received a special Golden Lion for the “consistent brilliance” of its work and was praised by many critics at the Venice Film Festival
. Recently he took on a role of the executive producer of an epic film 1612
.
On January 22, 2008, Mikhalkov's film 12 was named as a nominee for the 2008 Academy Awards
. Commenting on the nomination, Mikhalkov said, "I am overjoyed that the movie has been noticed in the United States and, what's more, was included in the shortlist of five nominees. This is a significant event for me."
Nikita Mikhalkov has presented his "epic drama" Burnt by the Sun 2
at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival
, but did not receive any awards. The film has been selected as the Russian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film
at the 84th Academy Awards
.
, whom he married on March 6, 1967. They had a son, Stepan Mikhalkov, born in September 1966.
With his second wife, former model Tatyana, he had son Artem (born December 8, 1975) and daughters Anna (born 1974) and Nadya
(born September 27, 1987).
and Slavophile
views.
In October 2006 Mikhalkov visited Serbia
, giving moral support to Serbia's sovereignty over Kosovo
.
In 2008 he visited Serbia
to support Tomislav Nikolić
who was running as the ultra-nationalist candidate for the Serb presidency at the time. Mikhalkov took part in a meeting of "Nomocanon
", a Serb youth organization which denies war crimes committed by Serbs
in the 1992-99 Yugoslav wars
. In a speech given to the organization, Mikhalkov spoke about a "war against Orthodoxy" wherein he cited Orthodox Christianity
as "the main force which opposes cultural and intellectual McDonald's
". In response to his statement, a journalist asked Mikhalkov: "Which is better, McDonald's or Stalinism
?" Mikhalkov answered: "That depends on the person". Mikhalkov has described himself as a monarchist.
Mikhalkov has been a strong supporter of Russian president Vladimir Putin
. In October 2007, Mikhalkov, who produced a television program for Putin's 55th birthday, co-signed an open letter asking Putin not to step down after the expiry of his term in office.
Mikhalkov's vertical of power-style leadership of the Cinematographers' Union has been criticized by many prominent Russian filmmakers and critics as autocratic, and encouraged many members to leave and form a rival union in April 2010.
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and Russian filmmaker, actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, and head of the Russian Cinematographers' Union.
Mikhalkov was born in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
into the distinguished, artistic Mikhalkov family. His great grandfather was the imperial governor of Yaroslavl
Yaroslavl
Yaroslavl is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historical part of the city, a World Heritage Site, is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Kotorosl Rivers. It is one of the Golden Ring cities, a group of historic cities...
, whose mother was a Galitzine
Galitzine
For Orthodox clergyman and theologian, see Alexander Golitzin.The Galitzines are one of the largest and noblest princely houses of Russia. Since the extinction of the Korecki family in the 17th century, the Golitsyns have claimed dynastic seniority in the House of Gediminas...
princess. Nikita's father, Sergei Mikhalkov, was best known as writer of children's literature, although he also wrote lyrics to his country's national anthem on three different occasions spanning nearly 60 years—two different sets of lyrics used for the Soviet national anthem
National Anthem of the Soviet Union
The National Anthem of the Soviet Union or the State Anthem of the USSR was introduced during World War II on March 15, 1944, replacing The Internationale as the official national anthem of the Soviet Union as well as the national anthem of the Russian SFSR...
, and the current lyrics of the Russian national anthem
National Anthem of Russia
The National Anthem of the Russian Federation is the name of the official national anthem of Russia. Its musical composition and lyrics were adopted from the anthem of the Soviet Union, composed by Alexander Alexandrov, and lyricists Sergey Mikhalkov and Gabriel El-Registan. The Soviet anthem was...
. Nikita's mother, the poetess Natalia Konchalovskaya, was the daughter of the avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
artist Pyotr Konchalovsky
Pyotr Konchalovsky
Pyotr Konchalovsky , was a Russian painter, a member of Jack of Diamonds group.-Life and career:...
and granddaughter of another outstanding painter, Vasily Surikov
Vasily Surikov
Vasily Ivanovich Surikov was the foremost Russian painter of large-scale historical subjects...
. Nikita's older brother is the filmmaker Andrei Konchalovsky
Andrei Konchalovsky
Andrei Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky is a Soviet-American and Russian film director, film producer and screenwriter....
, primarily known for his collaboration with Andrei Tarkovsky
Andrei Tarkovsky
Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky was a Soviet and Russian filmmaker, writer, film editor, film theorist, theatre and opera director, widely regarded as one of the finest filmmakers of the 20th century....
and his own Hollywood action films, such as Runaway Train
Runaway Train (film)
Runaway Train is a 1985 film about two escaped convicts and a female train worker who are stuck on a runaway train as it barrels through snowy desolate Alaska. It stars Jon Voight as Oscar "Manny" Manheim, Eric Roberts as Buck, John P. Ryan as Associate Warden Ranken and Rebecca De Mornay as Sara...
and Tango & Cash
Tango & Cash
Tango & Cash is a 1989 American buddy cop film starring Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, Jack Palance and Teri Hatcher. It was directed by Andrei Konchalovsky, although Albert Magnoli took over in the later stages of filming....
.
Early acting career
Moscow Art Theatre
The Moscow Art Theatre is a theatre company in Moscow that the seminal Russian theatre practitioner Constantin Stanislavski, together with the playwright and director Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko, founded in 1898. It was conceived as a venue for naturalistic theatre, in contrast to the melodramas...
and later at the Shchukin School of the Vakhtangov Theatre. While still a student, he appeared in Georgi Daneliya
Georgi Daneliya
Georgi Daneliya is a Soviet/Georgian/Russian film director, who became known throughout the Soviet Union for his "sad comedies" .Daneliya graduated from the Moscow Architecture Institute and worked as an architect...
's film I Step Through Moscow
I Step through Moscow
Walking the Streets of Moscow is a 1963 Soviet movie directed by Georgi Daneliya and produced by Mosfilm studios. It stars Nikita Mikhalkov, Alexei Loktev, Evgeniy Steblov and Galina Polskikh. The film also features cameos by four People's Artists of the USSR: Rolan Bykov, Vladimir Basov, Lev...
(1964) and his brother Andrei Konchalovsky's film Home of the Gentry (1969). He was soon on his way to becoming a star of the Soviet stage and cinema.
Begins directing
While continuing to pursue his acting career, he entered VGIK, the state film school in Moscow, where he studied directing under filmmaker Mikhail RommMikhail Romm
Mikhail Ilych Romm was a Soviet film director.He was born in Irkutsk. His father was a social democrat of Jewish descent who had been exiled there. He graduated from gymnasium in 1917 and entered the Moscow College for Painting, Sculpture and Architecture...
, teacher to his brother and Andrei Tarkovsky
Andrei Tarkovsky
Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky was a Soviet and Russian filmmaker, writer, film editor, film theorist, theatre and opera director, widely regarded as one of the finest filmmakers of the 20th century....
. He directed his first short film in 1968, I'm Coming Home, and another for his graduation, A Quiet Day at the End of the War in 1970. Mikhalkov had appeared in over twenty films, including his brother's Uncle Vanya (1972), before he co-wrote, directed and starred in his first feature, At Home Among Strangers
At Home Among Strangers
At Home among Strangers is a 1974 Soviet film starring Yuri Bogatyryov and Anatoly Solonitsyn and directed by Nikita Mikhalkov. Some hail it as the most significant of osterns...
in 1974, an Ostern
Ostern
The Ostern or Red Western was the Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc countries' take on the Western.It generally took two forms:...
set just after the 1920s civil war in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
Gains international reputation
Melodrama
The term melodrama refers to a dramatic work that exaggerates plot and characters in order to appeal to the emotions. It may also refer to the genre which includes such works, or to language, behavior, or events which resemble them...
in a resort town while the Revolution
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
rages around them. The film, based upon the last days of Vera Kholodnaya
Vera Kholodnaya
Vera Vasilyevna Kholodnaya was the first star of Russian silent cinema...
, was highly acclaimed upon its release in the U.S.
Mikhalkov's next film, An Unfinished Piece for Player Piano (1977) was adapted by Mikhalkov from Chekhov
Anton Chekhov
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was a Russian physician, dramatist and author who is considered to be among the greatest writers of short stories in history. His career as a dramatist produced four classics and his best short stories are held in high esteem by writers and critics...
's early play, Platonov, and won the first prize at the San Sebastian Film Festival. In 1978, while starring in his brother's epic film Siberiade
Siberiade
Siberiade is a 1979 epic Soviet film in four parts, spanning much of the 20th century. The leading roles were played by the celebrated Soviet actors Nikita Mikhalkov and Lyudmila Gurchenko...
, Mikhalkov made Five Evenings, a love story about a couple separated by World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, who meet again after eighteen years. Mikhalkov's next film, Oblomov (1980), with Oleg Tabakov
Oleg Tabakov
Oleg Pavlovich Tabakov is a Soviet and Russian actor and the artistic director of the Moscow Art Theatre.-Theatre career:...
in the title role, is based on Ivan Goncharov
Ivan Goncharov
Ivan Alexandrovich Goncharov was a Russian novelist best known as the author of Oblomov .- Biography :Ivan Goncharov was born in Simbirsk ; his father was a wealthy grain merchant and respected official who was elected mayor of Simbirsk several times...
's classic novel about a lazy young nobleman who refuses to leave his bed. Family Relations (1981) is a comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
about a provincial woman in Moscow dealing with the tangled relationships of her relatives. Without Witnesses (1983) tracks a long night's conversation between a woman (Irina Kupchenko) and her ex-husband (Mikhail Ulyanov
Mikhail Ulyanov
Mikhail Alexandrovich Ulyanov was a Soviet and Russian actor who was one of the most recognizable persons of the post-World War II Soviet theatre and cinema. He was named People's Artist of the USSR in 1969 and received a special prize from the Venice Film Festival in 1982.Mikhail Alexandrovich...
) when they are accidentally locked in a room.
In the early 1980s, Mikhalkov resumed his acting career, appearing in Eldar Ryazanov
Eldar Ryazanov
Eldar Aleksandrovich Ryazanov is a Soviet/Russian film director whose comedies, satirizing the daily life of the country, are very famous throughout the former Soviet Union....
's immensely popular Station for Two (1982) and A Cruel Romance (1984). At that period, he also played Henry Baskerville in the Soviet screen version
The Hound of the Baskervilles (1981 film)
The Hound of the Baskervilles is a 1981 Soviet film adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle's novel The Hound of the Baskervilles. It was the third installment in the TV series about adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson...
of The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Hound of the Baskervilles
The Hound of the Baskervilles is the third of four crime novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set largely on Dartmoor in Devon in England's West Country and tells the story of an...
. He also starred in many of his own films, including At Home Among Strangers
At Home Among Strangers
At Home among Strangers is a 1974 Soviet film starring Yuri Bogatyryov and Anatoly Solonitsyn and directed by Nikita Mikhalkov. Some hail it as the most significant of osterns...
, A Slave of Love, and An Unfinished Piece for Player Piano.
International success
Marcello Mastroianni
Marcello Vincenzo Domenico Mastroianni, Knight Grand Cross was an Italian film actor. His honours included British Film Academy Awards, Best Actor awards at the Cannes Film Festival and two Golden Globe Awards.- Personal life :...
as an old man who tells a story of a romance he had when he was younger, a woman he has never been able to forget. The film was highly praised, and Mastroianni received the Best Actor Prize at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival
1987 Cannes Film Festival
- Jury :*Yves Montand*Danièle Heymann*Elem Klimov*Gérald Calderon*Jeremy Thomas*Jerzy Skolimowski*Nicola Piovani*Norman Mailer*Theo Angelopoulos-Feature film competition:...
and an Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
nomination for his performance.
Mikhalkov's next film, Urga
Urga (film)
Urga is a 1991 film by Russian director Nikita Mikhalkov. It is released in North America as Close to Eden. It depicts the friendship between a Russian truck driver and a Mongolian shepherd in Inner Mongolia...
(1992, a.k.a. Close to Eden), set in the little known world of the Mongols
Mongols
Mongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
, received the Golden Lion
Golden Lion
Il Leone d’Oro is the highest prize given to a film at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was introduced in 1949 by the organizing committee and is now regarded as one of the film industry's most distinguished prizes...
at the Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
. Mikhalkov's Anna: 6-18 (1993) documents his daughter Anna as she grows from childhood to maturity.
Mikhalkov's most famous production to date, Burnt by the Sun
Burnt by the Sun
Burnt by the Sun is a 1994 film by Russian director and actor Nikita Mikhalkov. The film depicts the story of a senior Red Army officer and his family during the Great Purge of the late 1930s in the Stalinist Soviet Union...
(1994), was steeped in the paranoid atmosphere of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
's Great Terror
Great Purge
The Great Purge was a series of campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated by Joseph Stalin from 1936 to 1938...
. The film received the Grand Prize
Grand Prix (Cannes Film Festival)
The Grand Prix is an award of the Cannes Film Festival bestowed by the jury of the festival on one of the competing feature films. It is the second-most prestigious prize of the festival after the Palme d'Or...
at Cannes
1994 Cannes Film Festival
The 1994 Cannes Film Festival started on 12 May and ran until 23 May. The Palme d'Or went to the American film Pulp Fiction directed by Quentin Tarantino.-Official Selection:*Clint Eastwood *Catherine Deneuve...
and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
, among many other honours. To date, Burnt by the Sun remains the highest grossing film to come out of the former Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and filming for a sequel is under way.
Recent career
Mikhalkov used the critical and financial triumph of Burnt by the Sun to raise $25,000,000 for his most epic venture to date, The Barber of Siberia (1998). The film, which was screened out of competition at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival1999 Cannes Film Festival
The 52nd Cannes Film Festival was held on May 12-23, 1999. The Palme d'Or went to the French-Belgian film Rosetta by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne.-Jury:* David Cronenberg * André Téchiné * Barbara Hendricks...
, was designed as a patriotic extravaganza for domestic consumption. It featured Julia Ormond
Julia Ormond
Julia Karin Ormond is an English actress who has appeared in film and television and on stage.-Early life and education:...
and Oleg Menshikov
Oleg Menshikov
Oleg Evgenyevich Menshikov ; is a Russian entertainer. He is a film and theatre actor, singer and director. He started his film career in the early 1980s playing in the comedy Pokrovskie vorota and in Nikita Mikhalkov's Rodnya....
, who regularly appears in Mikhalkov's films, in the leading roles. The director himself appeared as Tsar Alexander III of Russia
Alexander III of Russia
Alexander Alexandrovich Romanov , historically remembered as Alexander III or Alexander the Peacemaker reigned as Emperor of Russia from until his death on .-Disposition:...
.
The film received the Russia State Prize and spawned rumours about Mikhalkov's presidential ambitions. The director, however, chose to administer the Russian cinema industry. Despite much opposition from rival directors, he was elected the President of the Russian Society of Cinematographists and has managed the Moscow Film Festival since 2000. He also set the Russian Academy Golden Eagle Award
Golden Eagle Award
The Golden Eagle Award is an accolade by the Russian National Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences of Russia to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, directors, actors, and writers...
in opposition to the traditional Nika Award
Nika Award
The Nika Award is a prestigious annual ceremony held by the Russian Academy of Cinema Arts and Sciences which was established in 1987 in Moscow, Russia by Yuli Gusman, and ostensibly modelled on the Academy Awards . Russian Academy Award takes its name from Nike, the goddess of victory...
.
In 2005, Mikhalkov resumed his acting career, starring in three brand-new movies - The Councillor of State, a Fandorin
Fandorin
Fandorin is a fictitious Russian surname in the novels of Boris Akunin.series protagonists:* Erast Fandorin * Nicholas Fandorin...
mystery film which broke the Russian box-office records, Zhmurki
Zhmurki
Dead Man's Bluff, or Zhmurki is a 2005 Russian black comedy/crime film.Director Aleksei Balabanov, who directed Brother and Brother 2 , uses "uniformly ace" cameo performances, by Russia's most prominent actors, to send up both the greed-is-good mentality of the newly democratized former Soviet...
, a noir-drenched comedy about the Russian Mafia
Russian Mafia
The Russian Mafia is a name applied to organized crime syndicates in Russia and Ukraine. The mafia in various countries take the name of the country, as for example the Ukrainian mafia....
and Krzysztof Zanussi
Krzysztof Zanussi
Krzysztof Zanussi, is a Polish producer and film director.He is a professor of European film at the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland where he conducts a summer workshop...
's Persona non grata.
On September 8, 2007, Mikhalkov’s film 12
12 (film)
12 is a 2007 crime film by Russian director and actor Nikita Mikhalkov. The film was presented at the Venice Film Festival, where Mikhalkov was awarded the Special Lion for Overall Work...
, a modern adaptation of Sidney Lumet
Sidney Lumet
Sidney Lumet was an American director, producer and screenwriter with over 50 films to his credit. He was nominated for the Academy Award as Best Director for 12 Angry Men , Dog Day Afternoon , Network and The Verdict...
's court drama Twelve Angry Men, received a special Golden Lion for the “consistent brilliance” of its work and was praised by many critics at the Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
. Recently he took on a role of the executive producer of an epic film 1612
1612 (film)
1612 is a 2007 Russian historical fantasy film about the Time of Troubles and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth–Muscovite War . It was directed by Vladimir Khotinenko and produced by Nikita Mikhalkov...
.
On January 22, 2008, Mikhalkov's film 12 was named as a nominee for the 2008 Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
. Commenting on the nomination, Mikhalkov said, "I am overjoyed that the movie has been noticed in the United States and, what's more, was included in the shortlist of five nominees. This is a significant event for me."
Nikita Mikhalkov has presented his "epic drama" Burnt by the Sun 2
Burnt by the Sun 2
Burnt by the Sun 2 is a 2010 Russian drama film directed by and starring Nikita Mikhalkov. The film concists of two parts: : Exodus and Citadel . It is the sequel to Mikhalkov's 1994 film Burnt by the Sun, set in the Eastern Front of World War II...
at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival
2010 Cannes Film Festival
The 63rd annual Cannes Film Festival was held from May 12 to May 23, 2010, in Cannes, France. The Cannes Film Festival, hailed as being one of the most recognized and prestigious film festivals worldwide, was founded in 1946. It consists of having films screened in and out of competition during the...
, but did not receive any awards. The film has been selected as the Russian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
at the 84th Academy Awards
84th Academy Awards
The 84th Academy Awards ceremony will honor the best films of 2011 and will take place on February 26, 2012, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California. It will be televised in the United States on ABC. The host was originally going to be Eddie Murphy. However, after Brett Ratner resigned as...
.
Personal life
Mikhalkov's first wife was a renowned Russian actress Anastasiya VertinskayaAnastasiya Vertinskaya
Anastasiya Alexandrovna Vertinskaya , a Soviet and Russian actress whose mass popularity and high critical acclaim made her one of the most distinguished figures in the history of the 20th century Soviet cinema...
, whom he married on March 6, 1967. They had a son, Stepan Mikhalkov, born in September 1966.
With his second wife, former model Tatyana, he had son Artem (born December 8, 1975) and daughters Anna (born 1974) and Nadya
Nadezhda Mikhalkova
Nadezhda Mikhalkova is a Russian actress.Nadezhda is the youngest daughter of actor and film director Nikita Mikhalkov and fashion designer Tatyana Shigaeva. Her brother Artyom and sister Anna are also actors...
(born September 27, 1987).
Political views
Mikhalkov is actively involved in Russian politics. He is known for his at times extreme Russian nationalistRussian nationalism
Russian nationalism is a term referring to a Russian form of nationalism. Russian nationalism has a long history dating from the days of Muscovy to Russian Empire, and continued in some form in the Soviet Union. It is closely related to Pan-Slavism...
and Slavophile
Slavophile
Slavophilia was an intellectual movement originating from 19th century that wanted the Russian Empire to be developed upon values and institutions derived from its early history. Slavophiles were especially opposed to the influences of Western Europe in Russia. There were also similar movements in...
views.
In October 2006 Mikhalkov visited Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, giving moral support to Serbia's sovereignty over Kosovo
Constitutional status of Kosovo
The political status of Kosovo is the subject of a long-running political and territorial dispute between the Serbian government and Kosovo's largely ethnic-Albanian population, stemming from the breakup of Yugoslavia at the end of the 20th century, and the ensuing Yugoslav wars...
.
In 2008 he visited Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
to support Tomislav Nikolić
Tomislav Nikolic
Tomislav "Toma" Nikolić is a Serbian politician, President of the Serbian Progressive Party. He is also a former member of the Serbian Radical Party, where he served as Deputy Leader of the party and parliamentary leader during the absence of Vojislav Šešelj...
who was running as the ultra-nationalist candidate for the Serb presidency at the time. Mikhalkov took part in a meeting of "Nomocanon
Nomocanon
Nomocanon is a collection of Ecclesiastical law, consisting of the elements from both the Civil law and the Canon law.-Byzantine nomocanons:Collections of this kind were found only in Eastern law...
", a Serb youth organization which denies war crimes committed by Serbs
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
in the 1992-99 Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
. In a speech given to the organization, Mikhalkov spoke about a "war against Orthodoxy" wherein he cited Orthodox Christianity
Orthodox Christianity
The term Orthodox Christianity may refer to:* the Eastern Orthodox Church and its various geographical subdivisions...
as "the main force which opposes cultural and intellectual McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
". In response to his statement, a journalist asked Mikhalkov: "Which is better, McDonald's or Stalinism
Stalinism
Stalinism refers to the ideology that Joseph Stalin conceived and implemented in the Soviet Union, and is generally considered a branch of Marxist–Leninist ideology but considered by some historians to be a significant deviation from this philosophy...
?" Mikhalkov answered: "That depends on the person". Mikhalkov has described himself as a monarchist.
Mikhalkov has been a strong supporter of Russian president Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
. In October 2007, Mikhalkov, who produced a television program for Putin's 55th birthday, co-signed an open letter asking Putin not to step down after the expiry of his term in office.
Mikhalkov's vertical of power-style leadership of the Cinematographers' Union has been criticized by many prominent Russian filmmakers and critics as autocratic, and encouraged many members to leave and form a rival union in April 2010.
Director
- Devochka i veshchi (1967) (short film)
- And I Go Home (1968) (short film)
- A Quiet Day During the End of War (1970) (short film)
- At Home Among StrangersAt Home Among StrangersAt Home among Strangers is a 1974 Soviet film starring Yuri Bogatyryov and Anatoly Solonitsyn and directed by Nikita Mikhalkov. Some hail it as the most significant of osterns...
(1974) - A Slave of Love (1976)
- An Unfinished Piece for a Player Piano (1977)
- Five Evenings (1978)
- OblomovOblomovOblomov is the best known novel by Russian writer Ivan Goncharov, first published in 1859. Oblomov is also the central character of the novel, often seen as the ultimate incarnation of the superfluous man, a symbolic character in 19th-century Russian literature...
(1980) - Family Relations (1981)
- Without Witness (1983)
- Dark Eyes (1987)
- Hitch-hiking (1990)
- Close to Eden (1992) (aka Urga)
- Remembering Chekhov (1993)
- Anna: 6 - 18 (1993)
- Burnt by the SunBurnt by the SunBurnt by the Sun is a 1994 film by Russian director and actor Nikita Mikhalkov. The film depicts the story of a senior Red Army officer and his family during the Great Purge of the late 1930s in the Stalinist Soviet Union...
(1994) - The Barber of SiberiaThe Barber of SiberiaThe Barber of Siberia is a 1998 Russian film that re-united the Academy Award winning team of director Nikita Mikhalkov and Michel Seydoux...
(1998) - 1212 (film)12 is a 2007 crime film by Russian director and actor Nikita Mikhalkov. The film was presented at the Venice Film Festival, where Mikhalkov was awarded the Special Lion for Overall Work...
(2007) - Burnt by the Sun 2Burnt by the Sun 2Burnt by the Sun 2 is a 2010 Russian drama film directed by and starring Nikita Mikhalkov. The film concists of two parts: : Exodus and Citadel . It is the sequel to Mikhalkov's 1994 film Burnt by the Sun, set in the Eastern Front of World War II...
(2010)
Actor (selected)
- I Step Through MoscowI Step through MoscowWalking the Streets of Moscow is a 1963 Soviet movie directed by Georgi Daneliya and produced by Mosfilm studios. It stars Nikita Mikhalkov, Alexei Loktev, Evgeniy Steblov and Galina Polskikh. The film also features cameos by four People's Artists of the USSR: Rolan Bykov, Vladimir Basov, Lev...
(1964) - Georgi DaneliyaGeorgi DaneliyaGeorgi Daneliya is a Soviet/Georgian/Russian film director, who became known throughout the Soviet Union for his "sad comedies" .Daneliya graduated from the Moscow Architecture Institute and worked as an architect... - A Nest of Gentry (1965) - A. Konchalovsky
- The Red and the WhiteThe Red and the White (film)The Red and the White is a 1967 film directed by Miklós Jancsó and dealing with the Russian Civil War. The original Hungarian title, Csillagosok, katonák, can be translated as "Stars on their Caps" , which, as with a number of Jancsó film titles, is a quote from a song...
(1967) - The Red TentThe Red TentThe Red Tent is a novel by Anita Diamant, published in 1997 by Wyatt Books for St. Martin's Press. It is a first-person narrative that tells the story of Dinah, daughter of Jacob and sister of Joseph, a talented midwife and proto-feminist. She is a minor character in the Bible, but the author has...
(1969) - Mikhail KalatozovMikhail KalatozovMikhail Kalatozov born Mikheil Kalatozishvili was a Georgian/Russian film director. Born in Tiflis , he studied economics before starting his film career as an actor and later cinematographer.... - The Postmaster (1972) - Sergey Soloviev
- At Home Among StrangersAt Home Among StrangersAt Home among Strangers is a 1974 Soviet film starring Yuri Bogatyryov and Anatoly Solonitsyn and directed by Nikita Mikhalkov. Some hail it as the most significant of osterns...
(1974) - Nikita Mikhalkov - A Slave of Love (1975) - Nikita Mikhalkov
- An Unfinished Piece for a Player Piano (1977) - Nikita Mikhalkov
- SiberiadeSiberiadeSiberiade is a 1979 epic Soviet film in four parts, spanning much of the 20th century. The leading roles were played by the celebrated Soviet actors Nikita Mikhalkov and Lyudmila Gurchenko...
(1978) - A. Konchalovsky - The Hound of the BaskervillesThe Hound of the Baskervilles (1981 film)The Hound of the Baskervilles is a 1981 Soviet film adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle's novel The Hound of the Baskervilles. It was the third installment in the TV series about adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson...
(1980) - Igor MaslennikovIgor MaslennikovIgor Fyodorovich Maslennikov is a Russian film director.He was born in Gorky. In 1954 Maslennikov completed his education in the department of journalism of the Leningrad University and worked as an editor, script writer, and cameraman on Leningrad television... - Portrait of the Artist's Wife (1982) - A. Pankratov-Biely
- Station for Two (1983) - Eldar RyazanovEldar RyazanovEldar Aleksandrovich Ryazanov is a Soviet/Russian film director whose comedies, satirizing the daily life of the country, are very famous throughout the former Soviet Union....
- A Cruel Romance (1984) - Eldar Ryazanov
- Humiliation and offense (1991) - A. Echpai
- Burnt by the SunBurnt by the SunBurnt by the Sun is a 1994 film by Russian director and actor Nikita Mikhalkov. The film depicts the story of a senior Red Army officer and his family during the Great Purge of the late 1930s in the Stalinist Soviet Union...
(1994) - Nikita Mikhalkov - Gogol's The Government Inspector (1996) - S. Gazanov
- The Barber of SiberiaThe Barber of SiberiaThe Barber of Siberia is a 1998 Russian film that re-united the Academy Award winning team of director Nikita Mikhalkov and Michel Seydoux...
(1998) - Nikita Mikhalkov - The State Counsellor (2005) - Filipp YankovskyFilipp YankovskyFilipp Yankovsky is a Russian actor and film director. He was born in 1968 to Soviet actor Oleg Yankovsky. He is possibly best known for directing the 2005 adaptation of the Boris Akunin novel The State Counsellor and for the 2006 film The Sword Bearer....
- ZhmurkiZhmurkiDead Man's Bluff, or Zhmurki is a 2005 Russian black comedy/crime film.Director Aleksei Balabanov, who directed Brother and Brother 2 , uses "uniformly ace" cameo performances, by Russia's most prominent actors, to send up both the greed-is-good mentality of the newly democratized former Soviet...
(2005) - Aleksei BalabanovAleksei BalabanovAleksei Balabanov is a popular Russian filmmaker. Balabanov is best known for the 1997 crime film Brat , and its more action-oriented sequel, Brat-2 , both of which starred the late Sergei Bodrov Jr. as a novice hit man... - Persona Non GrataPersona non grataPersona non grata , literally meaning "an unwelcome person", is a legal term used in diplomacy that indicates a proscription against a person entering the country...
(2005) - Krzysztof ZanussiKrzysztof ZanussiKrzysztof Zanussi, is a Polish producer and film director.He is a professor of European film at the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland where he conducts a summer workshop... - 1212 (film)12 is a 2007 crime film by Russian director and actor Nikita Mikhalkov. The film was presented at the Venice Film Festival, where Mikhalkov was awarded the Special Lion for Overall Work...
(2007) - Nikita Mikhalkov - Burnt by the Sun 2Burnt by the Sun 2Burnt by the Sun 2 is a 2010 Russian drama film directed by and starring Nikita Mikhalkov. The film concists of two parts: : Exodus and Citadel . It is the sequel to Mikhalkov's 1994 film Burnt by the Sun, set in the Eastern Front of World War II...
(2010)