''The Safety Match'', or ''The Swedish Match'' (russian: Шведская спичка, Shvedskaya spichka) is a 1954

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

comedy film directed by

Konstantin Yudin Konstantin Konstantinovich Yudin (russian: Константи́н Константи́нович Ю́дин) (1896–1957) was a Soviet film director. Biography Born in the Semyonovskoe village near Dmitrov (now Dmitrovsky District, Moscow Obla ...

, an adaptation of

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

's 1884 story of the same name.State Central Museum of Cinema. National adaptations of Anton Chekhov's writings
at ProfiCinema, 30 January 2015 (in Russian)

Plot

The inhabitants of the county discovered the body of the dead retired cornet Mark Klyauzov. At the scene of the crime was a charred Swedish match, which led investigators to think about a chain of terrible events. But it's not as simple as it seems.

Cast

Alexey Gribov Alexey Nikolayevich Gribov (russian: Алексе́й Никола́евич Гри́бов; — 26 November 1977) was a Soviet and Russian actor, "master of all types of Russian national character"Inna SolovyovaAlexey Nikolayevich Gribovarticl ...

as Magistrate Nikolai Yermolayevich Chudikov * Andrei Popov as Detective Emil Dyukovsky *

Mikhail Yanshin Mikhail Mikhailovich Yanshin (russian: Михаи́л Миха́йлович Я́ншин) (20 October 1902 – 17 July 1976) was a Soviet Union, Soviet stage and film actor. Biography Yanshin was born in the city of Yukhnov, located in the pre ...

as Police Capt. Yevgraf Kuzmich *

Nikolai Gritsenko Nikolai Olimpievich Gritsenko (russian: Николай Олимпиевич Гриценко, uk, Микола Олімпійович Гриценко; 24 July 1912 – 8 December 1979) was a Soviet and Russian theater and film actor. He ap ...

as Psekov, estate manager *

Nikolai Kurochkin Nikolai Stepanovich Kurochkin (Николай Степанович Курочкин, 4 June 1830, Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire, — 14 December 1884, Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire) was a Russian poet, editor, translator (Arsène Houssaye nov ...

as Yefrem, majordomo * Vladimir Kolchin as Nikolai Tetekho *

Tamara Nosova Tamara Nosova (russian: Тамара Макаровна Носова; 21 November 1927 – 25 March 2007) was a Soviet and Russian actress, who was awarded the title of People's Artist of Russia in 1992. She appeared in 27 films between 194 ...

as Akulina * Ksenia Tarasova as Maria Ivanovna Klyauzova *

Marina Kuznetsova Marina Kuznetsova (1925–1996) was a Soviet stage and film actress.Shaw & Youngblood p.281 Selected filmography * ''Krechinsky's Wedding'' (1953) * ''A Fortress in the Mountains'' (1953) * ''The Safety Match ''The Safety Match'', or ''The Swe ...

as Olga Petrovna Kuzmich * Mikhail Nazvanov as Mark Ivanovich Klyauzov *

Vladimir Pokovsky Vladimir may refer to: Names * Vladimir (name) for the Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Macedonian, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak and Slovenian spellings of a Slavic name * Uladzimir for the Belarusian version of the name * Volodymyr for the Ukr ...

as The Doctor * Georgy Gyeorgiu as Police Official

Critics

Elena Bauman of the

Soviet Screen ''Soviet Screen'' (russian: link=no, Советский Экран, Sovetsky Ekran) was an illustrated magazine published in the USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental c ...

magazine called the movie "one of the first signs of the new "free" cinema" (referring to the

Khrushchev Thaw The Khrushchev Thaw ( rus, хрущёвская о́ттепель, r=khrushchovskaya ottepel, p=xrʊˈɕːɵfskəjə ˈotʲ:ɪpʲɪlʲ or simply ''ottepel'')William Taubman, Khrushchev: The Man and His Era, London: Free Press, 2004 is the period ...

era) "which — as it seemed — accidentally stepped over the stone-dead canons, playfully challenged the sedate art style of those years". According to her, even the title challenged the official patriotic campaign against

cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

s, while the movie itself worked as a satire on

KGB The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...

. At the same time, she noted the superb ensemble cast that consisted of some of the biggest comedy names and a very authentic portrait of

's period and writings.

Legacy

During 2015 which was declared the Year of Literature in Russia ''The Safety Match'' was widely shown at various film festivals and retro movie screenings across the country as part of the programme dedicated to 155 years since

's birth.National Chekhov adaptations will be shown at the Central House of Cinema
by Epoch Times, 2 February 2015 (in Russian)

References

External links

* *
The Safety Match
' at

BFI The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Safety Match 1954 films Soviet crime comedy films 1950s Russian-language films 1950s crime comedy films Mosfilm films Films based on works by Anton Chekhov 1954 comedy films Films based on short fiction