The cast of the film "Matilda" (2017) From open sources
In the Russian Federation, for more than a year, they have been trying to ban a film about the romantic relationship between the heir to the Russian throne, Nikolai Romanov, and the ballerina of the Imperial Theater, Matilda Kshesinskaya. The picture became the subject of fierce public controversy, gave rise to many threats, lawsuits, and closer to the first premiere - attacks on its creators. Today it became known that a number of the country's largest cinemas have begun to refuse to show films.
Her name is Matilda
We are talking about the historical drama film "Matilda", filmed by the studio "Rock" directed by Alexei Uchitel.
Work on the film began in 2010 with the development of a script written by famous Russian writer Alexander Terekhov, who works in the mockumentary genre, and stretched over six years, eating up a budget of $25 million, most of which was spent on scenery and costumes.
As you know, the filming took place in the Great Catherine Palace and the Alexander Palace in Tsarskoye Selo, as well as in the Yusupov Palace, the Elagin Palace and the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg. In addition, the scenery of the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin, the Palace on the River Pontoon and the interiors of the carriages of the Imperial railway train were built for the painting. About 5 thousand costumes were prepared for the actors, the creation of which took over 17 tons of fabric.
The plot of the film is simple - it is a love story of Tsarevich Nikolai Romanov, the future last Russian Emperor Nicholas II and the ballerina of the Imperial Theater Matilda Kshesinskaya (from the moment the 22-year-old crown prince and the 18-year-old dancer met in 1890 and until the coronation of Nicholas with his wife Alexandra Feodorovna in 1896 year).
The fragments of the film presented in the trailer indicate that a “love triangle” arises between Nicholas II, his wife and Matilda Kshesinskaya, in which Nicholas, both before and after marriage, rushes between the arms of Matilda and Alexandra, the latter being depicted as a vindictive and envious person, ready to rush at the opponent with a knife.
Speaking of the last, originally the main role - the ballerina Matilda Kshesinskaya - the British actress Keira Knightley was supposed to play, but she had to give up work due to pregnancy, and the director was forced to look for a replacement.
So the performers of the main roles of the film were the Polish actress Mikhalina Olshanskaya (Matilda Kshesinskaya), the German theater and film actor Lars Eidinger (Nikolai Romanov). Among other star names were Evgeny Mironov, Ingeborg Dapkunaite, Danil Kozlovsky and Grigory Dobrygin.
Movie of the year turned into a scandal
At first, the news about the filming of the historical film about Romanov's love in Russia was not given much importance, but when the production of the film was in full swing and began to approach the finale, objections to filming fell down, up to a complete ban on the film. As it turned out, the first trailer for Matilda, released in April 2016, was not liked by the Royal Cross public movement. The participants saw in the frames of the still unfinished film a "distortion of historical events", as well as an "anti-Russian and anti-religious provocation".
"In the film" Matilda "Tsar Nicholas II is not depicted as he really was. The love between Matilda Kshesinskaya and Tsar Nicholas II was platonic, not lustful. Also, during the reign of Tsar Nicholas II, the economic and social situation was better compared to the current situation in Russia,” the organization said and turned to the then so-called prosecutor of the Russian-occupied Crimea, and now a deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation, Natalia Poklonskaya.
It should be noted that the negative display of the image of the canonized Saint Nicholas II in the Russian Federation is a violation of the article of the Criminal Code on inciting hatred (282 of the Criminal Code) and insulting the feelings of believers (148 of the Criminal Code).
Poklonskaya several times in 2016 sent a request to the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation to check the film, but law enforcement agencies did not find any violations.
Natalia Poklonskaya From open sources
From that moment on, the "paper" war between her and the director of the film, Alexei Uchitel, did not stop.
In January of this year, Poklonskaya sent another request to the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation. This time she asked to fully check the script of the film and the legality of allocating budgetary funds for it through the State Film Fund. Poklonskaya considered that the rights of Nicholas II were violated under four articles of the Criminal Code at once (slander, invasion of privacy, violation of the secrecy of correspondence and inviolability of the home).
In addition, Poklonskaya initiated the creation of an expert commission to check the painting. Experts' conclusions are disappointing. The deputy herself published them in April this year. "The film "Matilda" humiliates the Orthodox", - the main statement of the commission. They were also sent to the prosecutor's office, along with thousands, according to Poklonskaya, of appeals from Russians offended by the picture.
Director of the film "Matilda (2017) Alexei Uchitel From open sources
In response to such actions, the Teacher also sent a complaint to the Prosecutor General's Office and asked for protection from Poklonskaya's slander. Russian filmmakers stood up for the picture, and the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation said that the conclusions of the expert commission would not affect the film's distribution.
Against "Matilda" church and activists
But not only Poklonskaya and the "Royal Cross". The head of the Patriarchal Council for Culture, Bishop Tikhon (Shevkunov), who familiarized himself with the script for Matilda, and Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeev), who was one of the first to watch the film, also spoke negatively about the film.
As the churchmen assure, all relations between Nikolai and Matilda, which began in 1890, were permanently terminated in 1894 - since then they have not met alone. That is, Nicholas II never cheated on his wife. So - the picture casts a shadow on the canonized saint. However, they were not against showing the picture.
Stills from the film "Matilda" (2017) From open sources
Not all church hierarchs agreed with this approach. So, in June 2017, Metropolitan Pavel of Surgut sent a letter to the clergy of the diocese under his jurisdiction, in which he blessed in June-July 2017 to collect signatures for a ban on the production and distribution of the film and ordered to submit information about their number by August 1, 2017.
In parallel with this, the organization "Christian State - Holy Russia" sent threats to Russian cinemas demanding not to show "Matilda". "Any banner, poster, flyer with information about the rental of the film "Matilda" will be considered as your desire to humiliate the saints of the Orthodox Church and a provocation to the" Russian Maidan, "their appeal said.
Stills from the film "Matilda" (2017) From open sources
The movement threatened to burn down such cinemas.
In July of this year, at the Spartak-Lokomotiv match, fans unfurled a banner "For faith, the tsar and the fatherland. Teacher, hands off the Russian tsar," and in August, prayer standing against the showing of "Matilda" on cinema screens began in Russia.
From threats to action
On the eve it became known that someone burned two cars near the office of lawyer Alexei Uchitel, scattering leaflets nearby with the words "burn for Matilda." A few days earlier, unknown people tried to throw Molotov cocktails into the windows of the St. Petersburg building where the Teacher's studio is located, but failed.
In both cases, representatives of the director and himself did not rule out that people who were inspired by the criticism of the film by MP Natalia Poklonskaya could have been involved in the arson.
The press service of the film released a statement by Alexei Uchitel, in which he directly linked Poklonskaya with the organizations behind the attacks on the film. Poklonskaya herself said that she condemned any manifestations of violence against the filmmakers, and called the arson of cars a provocation.
It is noteworthy that representatives of the Romanov family called "Matilda" blasphemy, but opposed the ban on the film, because, in their opinion, this only fuels interest in the film. The widow of the nephew of Nicholas II filed a lawsuit against the studio "Rock" to establish justice, but it was not accepted for consideration by the court due to errors.
The Kremlin sees the threats against Uchitel and cinemas as extremist and said the director is indeed being attacked by Orthodox activists. The authorities demanded a proper investigation of the incidents from law enforcement officers.
Where in the Russian Federation they will still watch "Matilda"
Yesterday, September 11, residents of Vladivostok had the opportunity to watch the scandalous film exclusively. But officially the premiere of the film is scheduled for October 25 in Russia.
Earlier, state distributors in some regions of Russia announced that municipal cinemas would not buy the film "Matilda" for distribution. In the Kemerovo region, out of 109 cinemas in the region, the film will not be shown in 88.
"Matilda" will also not be available in state cinemas in Tver and Tatarstan. In Ingushetia, the film will not be screened by one of the two cinemas in the Druzhba region.
In Chechnya, residents themselves will not go to watch the Teacher's film, said the head of the republic, Ramzan Kadyrov. He asked the Ministry of Culture not to distribute Matilda's rental certificate in Chechnya.
Stills from the film "Matilda" (2017) From open sources
With some municipal cinemas withdrawing from distribution, the film was expected to be shown commercially. But today the Cinema Park and Formula Kino networks are the first operator of such cinemas to officially stop distributing the film.
It should be noted that the network includes a total of 75 cinemas in 28 cities of Russia, in which a total of 624 halls. According to the network itself, this means that almost every seventh cinema in Russia will not show Matilda.
In the network of cinemas "Five Stars", "Kinomax", as well as "Karo" there is no decision on the film yet. At the moment, the rental of "Matilda" in Russia was announced in the cinema network "Luxor".
In order to somehow fix this, the filmmakers invited representatives of VKontakte to a private screening of the film. Representatives of the social network, surprisingly, appreciated the movie and are ready to promote it.
I want to express my gratitude to the team working on the film "Matilda" for the opportunity to get acquainted with the material at the post-production stage.
Despite the fact that the film is in the process of production, even from its working version one can appreciate the seriousness of the attitude and scrupulousness of the creators' approach to their own work.
Our platform has always been open to dialogue and opinions, so we decided to support the film, allowing VKontakte users to form their own idea of Matilda.
Let's also collect opinions about the upcoming film. Here are some facts for you to think about:
Fact 1
The main roles were played by well-known Russian (and not only) actors - Mikhalina Olshanska (Anatomy of Evil), Danila Kozlovsky (Legend # 17), Ingeborga Dapkunaite (Burnt by the Sun).
Fact 2
Orthodox activists, historians and State Duma deputy Natalya Poklonskaya accused the filmmakers of violating ethical standards. It is alleged that there is no historical role in the history of the film, but the film itself is "terrible, vulgar and offends the memory of Nicholas II."
Fact 3
In a year and a half, about 7,000 unique costumes, shoes, hats, jewelry and accessories were created for the film. The production took more than 12 tons of silk, wool, velvet, cloth, leather and other materials.
Fact 4
Filming took place in historical places: Ekaterininsky, Elaginoostrovsky, Yusupov and Alexander Palaces, the Bolshoi Theater, the Mariinsky Theater and others.
Fact 5
Do not expect a clear historical accuracy, the authors took liberties in the presentation. But the main story is conveyed accurately.
Fact 6
This is the most scandalous film not only in Russia, but throughout the world. Discussions of this picture are already brighter and richer than those of the same “50 Shades of Grey”.
During the year they tried to ban it twice, but to no avail.
Fact 7
Thousands of people all over Russia came to the prayer standing against the film "Matilda". They were also supported in Moldova, Austria and Serbia.
Fact 8
Director Sergei Aliev plans to show his documentary response to "Matilda" - the film "Matilda's Lie". It even starred Duma deputy Vitaly Milonov.
Fact 9
Archpriest Chaplin accused Putin of a "huge mistake" because the President does not prohibit the release of the film "Matilda".
Fact 10
Representatives of the ROC (Russian Orthodox Church) declined to comment. They are not very worried about the fate of the film. Poklonskaya is indignant.
And here, as we promised, is the trailer for the scandalous film "Matilda":
Image copyright RIA Novosti Image caption Matilda Kshesinskaya was a famous ballerina before the October Revolution
Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Security and Anti-Corruption Natalya Poklonskaya sent a request to Russian Prosecutor General Yuri Chaika with a request to check the film "Matilda" by Alexei Uchitel for insulting the religious feelings of believers, specifying that she did not watch the film.
Strictly speaking, she could not watch it, since the film about the romance of the future emperor with the ballerina Matilda Kshesinskaya, who later, already in exile, married Grand Duke Andrei Vladimirovich from the Romanov dynasty, will be released in wide distribution only in March next year.
The film director Alexei Uchitel noted that the final version of the tape is not ready either. The same was said in the Kremlin - since no one has seen the tape, then the public does not have a definite opinion about it.
However, back in April this year on YouTube video hosting trailer appeared romantic historical drama. There he was also available to members of the little-known public movement "Royal Cross", who complained to the Crimean woman Poklonskaya, after which she turned to the prosecutor's office, where she herself served until recently.
Alexey Uchitel in an interview with Radio Baltika called this appeal "insanity", and lawyer and former senator Konstantin Dobrynin offered to defend the director in court for free if it comes to that.
"This is not the first request, there is already an official response from the prosecutor's office, which says that everything in the film is within the law. But, apparently, no one knows about this response," the director said.
Nicholas II has been canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church as a martyr and passion-bearer since 2000, but his relationship with Matilda Kshesinskaya took place before his accession to the throne.
It is the ballerina's romantic relationship with the future emperor that the Teacher's film is dedicated to. The slogan even appears in the trailer: "Love that changed Russia."
The BBC Russian service asked historians what they think of this film and the role of the dancer in Russian history.
Image copyright RIA Novosti Image caption The Kshesinskaya mansion in St. Petersburg became a museum of the revolution in the USSR, and in the post-Soviet period - a museum of the political history of RussiaPetr Multatuli, Candidate of Historical Sciences, Head of the Sector for Analysis and Evaluation of the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies. The great-grandfather of the historian served as a cook for the Romanov family and was killed by the Bolsheviks along with the emperor:
This topic is of interest to vulgar people from history. If we take the situation with Kshesinskaya, then it has no meaning either in history or in his career as a statesman - this is an absolutely insignificant episode of purely platonic love. They always met in public, they were not left alone - this can be seen from his diaries. What she [Matilda] wrote there in her memoirs - so she was retired and recalled not only novels with the Tsarevich.
But that's not the point - they take a specific story, this small episode and develop it in order to insult the memory of Nicholas II, the memory of history, his father, the Russian monarchy as such. The disgusting trailer is not only an insult to the feelings of believers - and Nikolai was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church - it is an insult to the feelings of any normal person. If a person has a normal relationship with conscience, taste, he perceives this as a personal insult. This is all very unworthy, this is a microwar with our history. If they want to experiment with history so much, let them take the history of France and England, only there it will not be all the same.
Image copyright RIA Novosti Image caption Like many Russian emigrants to France, Kshesinskaya was buried in Paris at the Sainte-Genevieve-des-Bois cemetery with her husband.Robert Service, professor of history at Oxford University, specialist on Nicholas II:
It is highly unlikely that Matilda could influence the future policy of Russia, other than the fact that the Bolsheviks confiscated her house. Especially considering that the future emperor lived in isolation in Tsarskoye Selo. Their romance was an open secret, but his diary is extremely uninformative about his personal life. It is an interesting phenomenon that a film about those events could cause such a scandal in Moscow now.
Alexander Shirokorad, military publicist and historical popularizer:
The romance was both deep and shallow: until the end of their days, they retained affection for each other. Matilda shamelessly exploited Nikolai both in theatrical and near-theatrical affairs: thanks to her, for example, the director of the Mariinsky Theater was removed, and in disputes with colleagues she used "administrative resources". When the Tsarevich decided to marry Alice of Hesse, he officially broke off relations with Matilda and gave her an apartment.
Kshesinskaya did not influence politics in any way. As I understand from what I know about the film, it says that if Nikolai had married Matilda, the whole history of Russia would have gone differently, but this is not even science fiction. There was no way he could do it, he would have to give up the throne and leave. Marriage was impossible according to the laws of the Russian Empire.
She needed money and influence, but she never got involved in politics, neither for revolutionaries nor against, and she was never a Polish nationalist. As well as being in France, she did not help the "white movement". She, of course, dreamed of becoming an empress, but only in order to have influence, no politics interested her.
In the center of the plot of the historical melodrama, as the creators called the genre, is the love of Tsarevich Nikolai Romanov, the future last Russian Emperor Nicholas II, and the ballerina Matilda Kshesinskaya. The romantic relationship did not last long - until his coronation with his future wife Alexandra Federovna. By the way, they say that the ballerina and Nicholas II even had a daughter (!)
After a relationship with Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich, she was the mistress of another Grand Duke Sergei Mikhailovich, and later married another representative of the royal house - Grand Duke Andrei Romanov. She raised an illegitimate son. And after the revolution of 1917, she left Russia forever. In Paris, she had her own ballet school.
The ban on the film Matilda is one of the hotly discussed topics on the Russian Internet.
Photo frame from the film
The fate of Kshesinskaya in itself is curious - she lived a long life, almost a hundred years. She is a prima ballerina of the imperial theaters, an influential person.
The role of the main character was invited by the Polish actress Mikhalina Olshanskaya, Emperor Nicholas II was played by the German theater and film actor Lars Eidinger. Among the star names: Ingeborga Dapkunaite, Evgeny Mironov, Sergey Garmash, Danila Kozlovsky and Grigory Dobrygin.
The painting, meanwhile, was conceived from the first day as a large-scale historical reconstruction: the Assumption Cathedral, the Palace on the River Pontoon and the interiors of the carriages of the Imperial railway train were specially recreated. Filming took place at the Mariinsky Theatre, in the Catherine, Alexander, Yusupov and Elaginoostrovsky palaces. According to some information, 17 tons of fabric were used for 5 thousand costumes. The film's budget is $25 million.
How did it all start?
Photo frame from the film
The fact that director Alexei Uchitel began filming historical films in 2014 was known and no one protested. And when the production was in full swing, to say the least, the public suddenly began to actively object to the filming, demanding a complete ban. Perhaps the first trailer for the film seemed provocative. But since its appearance, complaints have been pouring in. Among the main initiators is the public movement "Royal Cross":
“In the film“ Matilda ”, Tsar Nicholas II is depicted not as he really was. The love between Matilda Kshesinskaya and Tsar Nicholas II was platonic, not lustful. Also, under the reign of Tsar Nicholas II, the economic and social situation was better compared to the current situation in Russia,” the public activists said in an official statement. And they turned for support to Natalia Poklonskaya, now a State Duma deputy, and at that time the prosecutor of the Republic of Crimea.
Natalya Poklonskaya twice sent a request to the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation to check "Matilda" for extremism. The audit found no violations. In 2016, a petition appeared on the Internet on the site Change.org, the purpose of which is to ban the film. “The content of the film is a deliberate lie,” it says.
“In history, there are no facts of cohabitation of Russian tsars with ballerinas,” the petition says. - Russia is presented in the film as a country of gallows, drunkenness and fornication, which is also a lie. The picture includes bed scenes of Nicholas II with Matilda, the tsar himself is presented as a cruel vengeful debaucher and adulterer.
Photo frame from the film
At the end of January 2017, letters of complaint were sent to the cinemas of the country. Natalya Poklonskaya sent another deputy request to the Prosecutor General's Office to check the legality of spending the budget funds allocated by the Cinema Fund for the creation of the film. And in April 2017 - to an expert commission, consisting of doctors of psychological, legal, philological, cultural, historical sciences with experience of expert activity up to 28 years, to evaluate the script and trailers of the film.
The members of the commission saw a lot of criticisms: from, again, the moral character of the Russian Tsar to the ugly appearance of his beloved. And the verdict is the same: a false image of St. Nicholas II is imposed in the picture, the feelings of believers are offended. The results of the examination were once again sent to the Prosecutor General's Office.
Who supported the release of the film?
The main idea that sounds among most cultural figures and officials is that it is premature to make an opinion about a film that has not yet been released. But aggressive attacks from public organizations also could not go unnoticed. Many cultural figures considered it their duty to come out in support of the film: film director Stanislav Govorukhin, chairman of the Duma Committee on Culture, criticized the idea of checking the film, adding that such initiatives should be interrupted in the bud.
The open letter was written by more than forty Russian filmmakers, including Pavel Lungin, Alexander Proshkin, Alexander Gelman, Vitaly Mansky, Andrey Smirnov and others. The Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky, who was on the set of the film several times, also supported Matilda on the air of Komsomolskaya Pravda radio.
Finally, Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation, commented on the situation around the premiere. According to him, to evaluate a film that is not yet ready is at least strange. “And then, to be honest, I, unfortunately, do not have information about which experts evaluated the film - expert to expert strife. Therefore, without knowing who exactly evaluated the film, within what powers, it is probably difficult to talk about something, ”Peskov said.
And what do the descendants of the royal Romanov dynasty say?
Photo frame from the film
Representatives of the Romanov family do not agree on the assessment of the film, which has not yet been released. But the idea of the film clearly did not appeal to many. The director of the office of the Russian Imperial House, Alexander Zakatov, on the air of Radio Baltika, called Matilda a base fake that has nothing to do with real events: “It is quite possible to discuss the personality of even a holy person, even a king, but for what purpose? To show in some perverted form, to earn money on low emotions and instincts? This is not good".
The representative of the association of members of the Romanov family (another branch of the family) in Russia, Ivan Artsishevsky, believes that there is nothing offensive in the picture. “Nicholas II became a saint for martyrdom, and I think it’s absolutely normal to show him as a man - this is my personal position,” Artsishevsky told TASS.
The filmmakers are tired of controversy
Director Alexei Uchitel called the discussion around Matilda useless and unnecessary. “Honestly, I'm already tired of Mrs. Poklonskaya's war with me and the entire film crew. Instead of calmly finishing the film, I have to be distracted by nonsense, nonsense and insults, ”said the director of RIA Novosti. “A film will come out, everyone will watch it, and only then will it be possible to discuss it.”
The producer of the film, Alexander Dostman, also believes: “People who have not seen the film, and no one except the working group has seen it, cannot draw any conclusions - this is ridiculous, some kind of comedy, amazing stupidity. And it’s even more surprising that everyone follows Natalia Poklonskaya’s lead, reckon with her opinion, I have already ceased to be surprised by her. This is a film about beautiful love. Regardless of whether Tsar Nicholas is or not, he is a man, and a man, what, cannot love?
According to TASS, Konstantin Dobrynin, the lawyer of director Alexei Uchitel, filed a complaint with the ethics commission of the State Duma of Russia against the activities of deputy Natalia Poklonskaya, substantiating possible violations of the rules of deputy ethics, manifested in Poklonskaya's "unfounded accusations" against the Teacher, as well as in the "use knowingly false information and calls for illegal actions" against the creators of the film "Matilda".
When is the premiere?
The premiere is scheduled for October 26, 2017, it will be held at the Mariinsky Theater - where the main character of the film, Matilda Kshesinskaya, performed at the beginning of the 20th century. By the way, the musical producer of the film was the artistic director and general director of the Mariinsky Theater Valery Gergiev.
Directed by Alexei Uchitel is by far the most scandalous film premiere of 2017. What is the film about and why is it being banned? Why does Poklonskaya think that watching Matilda is a sin? How did a film with pretense of historical drama cause controversy and a reputation for being almost extremist?
So what is the movie "Matilda" about? The plot of the film is about relationships. the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II with a Russian ballet dancer of Polish origin, prima ballerina of the Mariinsky Theater Matilda Kshesinskaya. The love line of Nicholas II with Matilda Kshesinskaya, according to sources, took place even before the ascension of Nicholas Romanov to the throne as emperor and before his marriage to Alexandra Feodorovna.
Why scandal? The combination of several factors merged together, and this is an insult to the feelings of believers, multiplied by historical inaccuracies, plus the personal protest of Natalia Poklonskaya. Firstly, the Russian Orthodox Church rebelled against the screening of the film, calling the story a fiction. Secondly, Nicholas II in 2000 were canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church, which, as it were, hints: what kind of extramarital affair with a saint are you talking about? Thirdly, the main wave of indignation was stirred up by none other than Natalya Poklonskaya - the prosecutor of the Republic of Crimea, a member of the United Russia party and a deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation. Poklonskaya is outraged by everything in the film - the plot, the cast, and of course, a hint about, as she put it, "fornication".
In her interviews with the media, Poklonskaya has repeatedly spoken out about why she wants to ban this film. State Duma deputy called it extremist, discrediting the honor of "our sovereign". Here is one of the last quotes about the movie:
“I note the need to take measures to recognize the plot of the film “Matilda” about the “fornication” of the Holy Pleaser of God and the Sovereign of the Russian Empire, presented by a German porn actor promoting Satanism, as extremist material, which actually leads to manifestations of extremism on the part of the detainees,” Regnum quotes Poklonskaya.
The closer the premiere of the film, the more heated the atmosphere around him. Let us recall earlier reports about mass prayers in the churches of Russia - with the aim of turning to the Almighty, so that he would help in the ban on Matilda. For the time being, the ROC did not use aggressive methods of pressure on the government, limiting itself to prayers for a ban, public statements, and the like. Now extreme measures are used by pseudo-activists, hiding behind the Church.
It is already not known for certain who provoked whom to persecute the film by Alexei Uchitel - the Poklonskaya Church, or the Poklonskaya Church, but the Matilda scandal has given rise to dangerous speculation on the subject. So, the day before, an “Orthodox activist” was already detained - Alexander Kalinin, leader of the organization "Christian State" . He was detained for threatening cinemas with arson - if they show Matilda, KP reports.
"Burn for Matilda"- these are the leaflets that were scattered at the entrance to the office of the director Alexei Uchitel's lawyer, which were discovered after the car was set on fire. According to Vesti, the incident occurred on September 11, and a criminal case was opened on the fact of arson. Now the suspects - three of them, including Kalinin - have been detained.
This is not to say that threats do not work."From sin" whether, or in order to maintain a reputation - who knows, but the first refusals from "Matilda" have already thundered. It is reported that two major film distribution networks have already refused to distribute the film - “ Formula Kino" and "Cinema Park".
By the way, the main opponent of the film, Natalya Poklonskaya, has already commented on the situation with arson and threats:
“The absolutely legal situation with the film Matilda is being used by someone for purposes that have nothing to do with protecting our history and the Faith. The manifestation of extremism in this matter is part of a specific plan aimed at destabilizing society, dividing people, discrediting Orthodox believers, ”Poklonskaya said.
Of course, this is not a way out - to fight the "extremist film" with extremist methods. Vladimir Medinsky agrees with this.
But what about the Ministry of Culture? Many, if not outraged, then at least surprised the aloofness of the Ministry of Culture from the Matilda scandal. After the latest absurd events with arson, the head of the Ministry of Culture, Vladimir Medinsky, nevertheless spoke about the film, saying that The Ministry of Culture can no longer stand aside:
“I am often reproached for being too conservative. And as a conservative, I want to say: such self-proclaimed “activists” discredit both the state cultural policy and the Church, ”KP quotes Medinsky as saying, “I don’t know what considerations respected Mrs. Poklonskaya is guided by, starting and supporting this hubbub. Maybe from a pure heart. Moreover, he is not ready to unravel the motivations of various “activists”-arsonists who brazenly call themselves “Orthodox”
It is worth noting that Medinsky himself looked at the picture and noted that in "Matilda" there is nothing offensive to the memory of Nicholas II.
Poklonskaya, apparently, does not intend to give up, arguing that the Teacher will answer in court before the descendants of the Romanov dynasty.
How was the film rated by caring viewers? There was a month left before the premiere of the film, however, the first screenings had already been held - in Vladivostok. On September 20, Matilda is expected to be shown in Novosibirsk, and residents of Astrakhan will also see the movie earlier.
