On a lighter note, Russian television has been showing episodes of the Sherlock Holmes series that was made back in the early 80s. Vasily Livanov and Vitaly Solomin starred as the intrepid duo. The program was one of the most successful in Soviet television. It pretty much covered all the short stories, which have been handsomely bound into a new annotative 2-volume set. Here's a clip from the series, with subtitles.
If you're like me and wondered what the hell Stalker was all about, I would suggest reading Roadside Picnic , the book on which it was nominally based. Tarkovsky took his idea from the character, Redrick Schuhart, a laboratory assistant and Harmont Branch of the International Institute of Extraterrestrial Cultures, leaving the rest up to the imagination. The names were changed to protect the innocent. While Tarkovsky chose to shroud the story in mystery, the Strugatsky Brothers lay it out pretty clearly in their science fiction classic. Redrick, the Stalker, has gone into the zone countless times but each time represents a new set of challenges, especially with the Harmont Branch cracking down on the plundering of alien objects left behind by a visitation to a small rural town in Canada. I suppose setting the story in a place outside Russia, allowed the Strugatsky brothers more room to explore new ideas and avoid heavy censhorship, but according to Boris in t...
Sherlock Holmes and subtitles! What a terrific opening I'm going to watch the entire show tonight if it's there.
ReplyDeleteFor some reason, I've become a Sherlock Holmes junky lately. I purchased the entire Granada series with Jeremy Brett, and all the Basil Rathbone shows as well. There must be something about solving the world's problems through logic that appeals these days.
Have you seen the recent movie?
ReplyDeleteNo, I am passing on the new one. I love Robert Downey Jr. -- think he's one of the best actors out there -- but I saw the previews and it looks too much like a super hero/action film. Sort of defeats the whole idea if you have to attack the enemy with brute force and a little kung fu.
ReplyDeleteLoved the Russian version of "the beginning" though. Great scenes.
Vasily Livanov is my all time favorite Holmes!
ReplyDeleteThe series is probably the best adaptation ever :)
Thanks for dropping a line, Buddy. Love the old series.
ReplyDelete