The Killers

Starring: Yuliy Fayt, Aleksandr Gordon, Valentin Vinogradov, Vadim Novikov, Andrei Tarkovsky
Directed by: Marika Beiku, Aleksandr Gordon, Andrei Tarkovsky
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Drama, Short
Length: 19 minutes
1956

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Two killers enter a restaurant looking for a man they intend to kill.

Review:

Tim: The Killers is a fascinating short film, both in terms of its content and its larger context. First off, it's surprisingly well made for a Soviet student film. I had to keep reminding myself as I watched it- it was made by students. It felt far beyond that, like it belonged in the world of professionals. This is further explained by it being the first film ever directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, whom I've since learned is considered one of the all-time greats. For these reasons, it's absolutely worth seeing this film.

Let's talk about the film first. It's quite fascinating to watch Ernest Hemingway's short story adapted by Russian/Soviet students. The dialogue must have been mostly pulled directly from the source, which results in this interesting scenario- to see Soviet students spouting American dialogue. It's a testament to Tarkovsky (it was his idea, I've read) to be able to pull source material from places outside of the world and culture in which he grew up. I thought it was quite interesting to see this American story in a Russian setting. It works, as they adapt the story and the characters to a setting they are more familiar with. The short is only 19 minutes long, but they manage to cover the key points fairly well. This is an effective, if surprising, adaptation of Hemingway's work.

I thought the actors did well, especially considering they were students. The short might not have blown me away, but it held my attention. The actors are a bit reserved, as you might expect they would be. The direction is strong and it feels like a well-executed short film. Mikhail Romm, the students' teacher was obviously impressed. The short film itself is worthwhile.

After I watched the short, I had to learn more about Andrei Tarkovsky. One of the amazing things about film is that despite all the knowledge I've accumulated over the years, I'm often humbled by how much I don't know. This often comes from international cinema- I'm just not as well versed when you look across the entire world. As such, I'd never seen any of Andrei Tarkovsky's films before this. Many of them are regarded as the greatest of all time, so I have some obvious homework to do. In some ways, it's poetic that Tarkovsky's first film is the first of his I've seen. It was effective enough that I'm really curious to see more.

For this reason among others, I'd highly recommend The Killers. It's interesting to me that this short Hemingway story inspired the 1946 American film, and then, a decade later, this Soviet student short film adapts it again. There's something obviously cinematic about Hemingway's story.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: N/A



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Killers (1946), Ivan's Childhood