The Rifleman of the Voroshilov Regiment
Encyclopedia
The Rifleman of the Voroshilov Regiment is a 1999 Russian
action and drama film directed by Stanislav Govorukhin
based on the book Woman on Wednesdays by Viktor Pronin.
veteran Ivan Afonin lives with his granddaughter Katya. In a nearby flat, three bored unemployed youth, Vadim Pashutin, Boris and Igor Chuhanov Zvorygin kill time by designating Wednesdays as a day of sexual gratification. They manage to lure Katya to their flat and rape her. Initially the offenders are arrested, however Vadim's father is a senior figure in the police and uses his influence to have the charges against his son and his friends dropped.
Frustrated at the offenders having escaped justice, Ivan sells his dacha
and buys a silenced sniper rifle from an illegal weapons trader. He obtains the keys to a flat directly in front of and overlooking the offenders flat and enters it when his neighbour is absent. From there he begins to administer vigilante justice. Taking care not to kill the offenders, he instead shoots them in their genitals.
Several subsequent real life cases have been compared to the film.
Cinema of Russia
The cinema of Russia began in the Russian Empire, widely developed under the Soviet and in the years following the fall of the Soviet system, the Russian film industry would remain internationally recognised...
action and drama film directed by Stanislav Govorukhin
Stanislav Govorukhin
Stanislav Sergeyevich Govorukhin has been one of the most popular Soviet and Russian film directors since the 1960s...
based on the book Woman on Wednesdays by Viktor Pronin.
Plot
World War IIWorld 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...
veteran Ivan Afonin lives with his granddaughter Katya. In a nearby flat, three bored unemployed youth, Vadim Pashutin, Boris and Igor Chuhanov Zvorygin kill time by designating Wednesdays as a day of sexual gratification. They manage to lure Katya to their flat and rape her. Initially the offenders are arrested, however Vadim's father is a senior figure in the police and uses his influence to have the charges against his son and his friends dropped.
Frustrated at the offenders having escaped justice, Ivan sells his dacha
Dacha
Dacha is a Russian word for seasonal or year-round second homes often located in the exurbs of Soviet and post-Soviet cities. Cottages or shacks serving as family's main or only home are not considered dachas, although many purpose-built dachas are recently being converted for year-round residence...
and buys a silenced sniper rifle from an illegal weapons trader. He obtains the keys to a flat directly in front of and overlooking the offenders flat and enters it when his neighbour is absent. From there he begins to administer vigilante justice. Taking care not to kill the offenders, he instead shoots them in their genitals.
Reactions
The film proved controversial, with some film critics describing it as "a call to violence."Several subsequent real life cases have been compared to the film.