Anatoly (Otto) Alekseyevich Solonitsyn (russian: Анатолий (Отто) Алексеевич Солоницын; 30 August 1934 – 11 June 1982) was a Soviet

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

known for his roles in Andrei Tarkovsky's films. He won the

Silver Bear for Best Actor The Silver Bear for Best Actor (german: Silberner Bär/Bester Darsteller) was an award presented at the Berlin International Film Festival from 1956 to 2020. It was given to an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance and was chosen by ...

at the

31st Berlin International Film Festival The 31st annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 13 to 24 February 1981. The Golden Bear was awarded to the Spanish film '' Deprisa, Deprisa'' directed by Carlos Saura. The retrospective was dedicated to British film producer Mic ...

Film career

Solonitsyn was born in Bogorodsk. At birth, he was named Otto, after polar explorer

Otto Schmidt Otto Yulyevich Shmidt, be, Ота Юльевіч Шміт, Ota Juljevič Šmit (born Otto Friedrich Julius Schmidt; – 7 September 1956), better known as Otto Schmidt, was a Soviet scientist, mathematician, astronomer, geophysicist, statesm ...

. His debut in cinema was in the Sverdlovsk Film Studio's

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

''The Case of Kurt Clausewitz'' (1963), directed by

Gleb Panfilov Gleb Anatolyevich Panfilov (russian: Глеб Анатольевич Панфилов, link=no; born 21 May 1934 in Magnitogorsk) is an internationally acclaimed Russian film director noted for a string of mostly historical films starring his wif ...

. Solonitsyn is best known in the west for his roles in several of

Andrei Tarkovsky Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky ( rus, Андрей Арсеньевич Тарковский, p=ɐnˈdrʲej ɐrˈsʲenʲjɪvʲɪtɕ tɐrˈkofskʲɪj; 4 April 1932 – 29 December 1986) was a Russian filmmaker. Widely considered one of the greates ...

's films, including Dr. Sartorius in ''

Solaris Solaris may refer to: Arts and entertainment Literature, television and film * ''Solaris'' (novel), a 1961 science fiction novel by Stanisław Lem ** ''Solaris'' (1968 film), directed by Boris Nirenburg ** ''Solaris'' (1972 film), directed by ...

'' (1972), the Writer in ''

Stalker Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitoring them. The term ...

'' (1979), the physician in ''

Mirror A mirror or looking glass is an object that Reflection (physics), reflects an image. Light that bounces off a mirror will show an image of whatever is in front of it, when focused through the lens of the eye or a camera. Mirrors reverse the ...

'' (1975), and the title role in ''

Andrei Rublev Andrei Rublev ( rus, Андре́й Рублёв, p=ɐnˈdrʲej rʊˈblʲɵf , also transliterated as ''Andrey Rublyov'') was a Muscovite icon painter born in the 1360s who died between 1427 and 1430 in Moscow. He is considered to be one of the ...

'' (1966). In his book ''

Sculpting in Time ''Sculpting in Time'' (Russian "Запечатлённое время", literally "Captured Time") is a book by Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky about art and cinema in general, and his own films in particular. It was originally published in 19 ...

'', Tarkovsky calls him his favorite actor, and writes that Solonitsyn was intended to play the lead roles in each of his films ''

Nostalghia ''Nostalghia'' (UK: ''Nostalgia'') is a 1983 Soviet-Italian drama film directed by Andrei Tarkovsky and starring Oleg Yankovsky, Domiziana Giordano, and Erland Josephson. Tarkovsky co-wrote the screenplay with Tonino Guerra. The film depicts a R ...

'' (1983) and '' The Sacrifice'' (1986), but the actor died before their production. Tarkovsky admired Solonitsyn's ability to fully embody the ideas of the director. When Tarkovsky was considering making a film adaptation of Dostoevsky's famous novel ''

The Idiot ''The Idiot'' ( pre-reform Russian: ; post-reform rus, Идиот, Idiót) is a novel by the 19th-century Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was first published serially in the journal ''The Russian Messenger'' in 1868–69. The title is an ...

'', Solonitsyn was even ready to do the plastic surgery to look more like the great Russian writer. In the former

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

he is also well known for his roles in ''

At Home Among Strangers ''Friend to Foes, Foe to Friends'' (russian: Свой среди чужих, чужой среди своих; ''Svoy sredi chuzhikh, chuzhoy sredi svoikh'') is a 1974 Soviet film starring Yuri Bogatyryov and Anatoly Solonitsyn and directed by Nik ...

'' (1974), ''

The Train Has Stopped ''The Train Has Stopped'' (russian: Oстановился пoeзд, Ostanovilsya poezd) is a 1982 Soviet drama film directed by Vadim Abdrashitov and written by Aleksandr Mindadze. The last film role of Anatoly Solonitsyn. Before the official prem ...

'' (1982), and many others.

Awards

In 1981, he won the

at the

for his role in

Aleksandr Zarkhi Aleksandr Grigoryevich Zarkhi (russian: Александр Григорьевич Зархи; 18 February 1908 – 27 January 1997) was a Soviet and Russian film director and screenwriter. People's Artist of the USSR (1969). Hero of Socialist ...

's film ''

Twenty Six Days from the Life of Dostoyevsky ''Twenty Six Days from the Life of Dostoyevsky'' (russian: Двадцать шесть дней из жизни Достоевского, Dvadtsat shest dney iz zhizni Dostoevskogo) is a 1981 Soviet biographical film about writer Fyodor Dostoevs ...

''. The same year, he was given the title of

Honored Artist of the RSFSR Honored Artist of the RSFSR (, ''Zasluzhenny artist RSFSR'') was an honorary title granted to Soviet artists, including theatre and film directors, choreographers, music performers, and orchestra conductors, who had outstanding achievements in the ...

Death

Solonitsyn died from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

in 1982, at the age of 47. Allegedly, according to Viktor Sharun, the sound editor on ''

'', Solonitsyn, Tarkovsky and

Larisa Tarkovskaya Larisa Pavlovna Tarkovskaya (russian: Лариса Павловна Тарковская, née Yegorkina (Егоркина), from 1958, Kizilova (Кизилова); 1 February 1933 – 19 January 1998) was a Soviet film director and actress. She ...

became ill due to exposure to toxic chemicals during filming on the location of the movie.

Filmography

References

External links

* 1934 births 1982 deaths 20th-century Russian male actors People from Bogorodsky District, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast Honored Artists of the RSFSR Silver Bear for Best Actor winners Russian male film actors Russian male stage actors {{USSR-actor-stub Russian male television actors Soviet male film actors Soviet male stage actors Soviet male television actors Deaths from lung cancer in Russia Deaths from lung cancer in the Soviet Union Burials at Vagankovo Cemetery