''Stepan's Remembrance'' ( rus, Степанова памятка, Stepanova pamyatka) is a 1977 Soviet
fantasy film directed by
Konstantin Yershov
The first name Konstantin () is a derivation from the Latin name ''Constantinus (name), Constantinus'' (Constantine (name), Constantine) in some Languages of Europe, European languages, such as Russian language, Russian and German language, German ...
. It is an adaptation of
Pavel Bazhov
Pavel Petrovich Bazhov (russian: Па́вел Петро́вич Бажо́в; 27 January 1879 – 3 December 1950) was a Russian writer and publicist.
Bazhov is best known for his collection of fairy tales '' The Malachite Box'', based on Ura ...
's stories based on the
Ural region
Ural (russian: Урал) is a geographical region located around the Ural Mountains, between the East European and West Siberian plains. It is considered a part of Eurasian Steppe, extending approximately from the North to the South; from the A ...
Russian folklore. The stories were published ''
The Malachite Box
''The Malachite Box'' or ''The Malachite Casket'' ( rus, Малахитовая шкатулка, r=Malakhitovaya Shkatulka, p=məlɐˈxʲitəvəjə ʂkɐˈtulkə) is a book of fairy tales and folk tales (also known as ''skaz'') of the Ural regi ...
'' collection in 1939.
Production
The film director Konstantin Yershov wanted to change the traditional approach to the fairy tales adaptations. He felt that he did not need to create a magic spectacle, but rather to make a film which would be realistic at heart. He was interested in the characters, life and traditions of the
Serfdom
Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism, and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery, which develop ...
era.
Plot
The film loosely follows the plot of Bazhov's folk tale ''
The Mistress of the Copper Mountain
The Mistress of the Copper Mountain ( rus, Хозяйка медной горы, Hozjajka mednoj gory), also known as The Malachite Maid, is a legendary creature from Slavic mythology and a Russian fairy tale_character,_the_mountain_spirit_from_ ...
''. A skilled miner Stepan meets the green-eyed
Mistress of the Copper Mountain, the Malachite Lady. Stepan is disrespectful towards her, calling her "wench", but she appreciates his bravery. She orders him to relay her words to the
bailiff Severyan Nazarovich: "The Mistress of the Copper Mountain orders you, ye stinking goat, to get out of Krasnogorka". She promises to marry Stepan if he does so. The bailiff is enraged at the miner's impudence. Stepan is flogged, sent to a
mine face
In mining, the face is the surface where the mining work is advancing. In surface mining it is commonly called pit face, in underground mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usua ...
and fed only
dog food
Dog food is food specifically formulated and intended for consumption by dogs and other related canines. Dogs are considered to be omnivores with a carnivorous bias. They have the sharp, pointed teeth and shorter gastrointestinal tracts of ca ...
. The Mistress visits him and releases him from the mine. She shows him many treasures and the image of his daughter, although Stepan has no daughter and not even married yet. The Mistress says that her real name is Kseniya, and proposes marriage once again. Stepan honestly replies that he already promised to marry another girl, Nastya. The Malachite Lady is upset, but she likes his fidelity and bravery. She promises to solve his troubles with the bailiff and rewards him with a present for his bride, a
malachite
Malachite is a copper carbonate hydroxide mineral, with the formula Cu2CO3(OH)2. This opaque, green-banded mineral crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system, and most often forms botryoidal, fibrous, or stalagmitic masses, in fracture ...
casket
A casket jewelry box is a container that is usually smaller than a chest, and in the past were typically decorated. Whereas cremation jewelry is a small container, usually in the shape of a pendant or bracelet, to hold a small amount of ashes.
...
filled with jewellery. She warns him against ever thinking about her. The bailiff soon dies and Stepan is freed from his Master. He marries Nastya, but still has visions of the Malachite Lady and often sees small
lizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...
s, her servants. The Mistress continues watching over his family. Stepan's wife Nastya gives birth to a daughter Tanyushka and a son Melesha. The green-eyed Tanyushka likes lizards and gemstones. Stepan starts going to the copper mine to see the Mistress of the Copper Mountain. Sometimes Tanyushka joins them too. One day, watching them, Stepan shoots himself in the chest, but survives. He does not speak to the Malachite Lady again.
The second part of the film is based on ''
The Malachite Casket''. Years pass, Stepan gets older. He is especially close with his daughter, calling her "his remembrance". She is a beauty, and a lot of men are infatuated with her, including the new bailiff Parfyon Semyonovich. One day Stepan mentions his dream of seeing the malachite room at the imperial palace. He asks his wife to wear the jewellery from the Malachite Casket, but Tanyushka puts them on instead. She claims that they "warm her up", as if she is sitting by the fire. After Stepan's death, a young noble man Vasily Turchaninov, the owner of the mines' son, falls in love with Tanyushka. He asks for Nastya's permission to marry her daughter. Tanyushka claims that she is unsure of his feelings and announces that she will agree to the marriage if he shows her the malachite room at the imperial palace. After Vasily leaves, Tanyushka confesses to her mother that she actually likes the man, but she feels that his love will not last and therefore hides behind her pride. At the palace, noble people laugh at the girl's simple clothes, and Vasily is ashamed of her. Tanyushka rejects him, leans against the malachite wall and melts away. She comes back home to her mother and brother.
Cast
* Larisa Chikurova as
The Mistress of the Copper Mountain
The Mistress of the Copper Mountain ( rus, Хозяйка медной горы, Hozjajka mednoj gory), also known as The Malachite Maid, is a legendary creature from Slavic mythology and a Russian fairy tale_character,_the_mountain_spirit_from_ ...
*
Gennady Yegorov as Stepan
*
Irina Gubanova
Irina Igorevna Gubanova (russian: Ири́на И́горевна Губа́нова; 1940–2000) was a Russian ballerina and film actress.Cowie / Elley p.644 She was married to the actor Sergei Gurzo.
Selected filmography
* ''The Girl Withou ...
as Nastya, his wife
*
Natalya Andrejchenko
Natalya Eduardovna Andreychenko (russian: link=no, Ната́лья Эдуа́рдовна Андре́йченко; born May 3, 1956) is a Russian actress. Her most famous roles include the title character in ''Mary Poppins, Goodbye'' and Lyuba ...
as Tanyushka, his daughter
*
Igor Kostolevsky
Igor Matveyevich Kostolevsky (russian: Игорь Матвеевич Костолевский; born 10 September 1948) is a Soviet and Russian stage and film actor. He has received the People's Artist of Russia title in 1995. Kostolevsky is best k ...
as Vasily Turchaninov, the noble man in love with Tanyushka
*
Lev Krugly as Severyan Nazarovich, the
bailiff on the mine
* Dima Dymov as Melesha, Stepan's son
*
Igor Yefimov
Igor Markovich Yefimov or Igor Efimov (Russian: И́горь Ма́ркович Ефи́мов; August 8, 1937 – August 12, 2020) was an American philosopher, historian, writer and publisher of Russian origin. Some of his works were published und ...
as Parfyon Semyonovich, the new bailiff
*
Boris Arakelov as Parfyon's servant
*
Mikhail Svetin
Mikhail Semyonovich Svetin (russian: Михаил Семёнович Светин; born Michail Solomonovitch Goltsman; 11 December 1929 – 30 August 2015) was a Soviet, Russian actor. He appeared in more than fifty films.
Svetin's room 2 ...
as Dimitriy, the door-keeper at the imperial palace
*
Arkady Trusov as The Miner
*
Victor Chekmaryov as Savva Turchaninov, the landlord and the owner of the mines
Reception
G. Yermakova praised the protagonist's significant spiritual growth and the acting of
Gennady Yegorov, noting that such a remarkable performance is true success for any young actor: "He portrayed Stepan with the captivating sincerity, having created the image of the remarkable and talented person". She also stated that "The greatest luck of the film is the poetic
..embodiment of huge and tragic love between Stepan and the Mistress of the Copper Mountain".
For a long time Gennady Yegorov was closely associated with the character from ''Stepan's Remembrance'', he later said that people often called him "Stepan".
References
External links
*{{IMDb title, 3390582
1970s children's fantasy films
1970s Russian-language films
Russian children's fantasy films
Soviet fantasy films
Films based on Russian folklore
Lenfilm films
Soviet children's films