''Bear's Kiss'' is a

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

dramatic fantasy romance film directed by

Sergei Bodrov Sergei Vladimirovich Bodrov ( rus, Серге́й Влади́мирович Бодро́в, p=sʲɪrˈɡʲej bɐˈdrof; born 28 June 1948) is a Russian film director, screenwriter, and producer. In 2003 he was the president of the jury at the ...

. It is based on an original script by

Terrence Malick Terrence Frederick Malick (; born November 30, 1943) is an American filmmaker. Malick began his career as part of the New Hollywood generation of filmmakers and received awards at the Cannes Film Festival, Berlin International Film Festival, and ...

, who had previously attempted to fund the project multiple times. A German, Swedish, Russian, Spanish, French, and Italian co-production, the film was entered into the main competition at the

59th Venice International Film Festival The 59th annual Venice International Film Festival was held from 29 August to 8 September 2002, at Venice Lido in Italy. Chinese actress Gong Li was the Jury President of the main competition. The Golden Lion was awarded to ''The Magdalene ...

. The film has also been distributed under the titles ''Il bacio dell'orso'' (Italy), ''Le baiser de l'ours'' (France), ''Der Kuss des Bären'' (Germany), ''El beso del oso'' (Spain), and ''Медвежий поцелуй'' ("Medvezhiy potseluy") (Russia).

Plot

A circus girl, Lola ( Rebecca Liljeberg), raises a bear from cubhood. When she discovers that the bear, named Misha, can transform into a young man, a secret romance between the two ensues. Bodrov's son, Sergei Bodrov Jr., played Misha.

Trivia

Swedish former actress Liljeberg stopped acting after her film ''Bear's Kiss'' and now works as a doctor after completing her residency at

Södersjukhuset Södersjukhuset (Sös) is one of the largest district general hospital in Stockholm, Sweden. Constructed between 1937 and 1944, it was designed by architects Hjalmar Cederström and Hermann Imhäuser, and the construction was contracted to Toll ...

in Stockholm.

Cast

* Rebecca Liljeberg as Lola * Sergei Bodrov Jr. as Micha *

Joachim Król Joachim Król (, born 17 June 1957 in Herne, West Germany) is a German actor, known for his appearances in the films ''Run Lola Run'', '' Maybe, Maybe Not'', and '' Anne Frank: The Whole Story''. Early life and education Król was born in He ...

as Groppo * Keith Allen as Lou *

Maurizio Donadoni Maurizio Donadoni (born 7 January 1958) is an Italian film, stage and television actor. Born in Bergamo, Donadoni started his career on stage in the late 1970s, working among others with Luca Ronconi and Gabriele Lavia. He made his film debut in ...

as Marco * Anne-Marie Pisani as Margarita * Marcela Musso as Anna *

Ariadna Gil Ariadna Gil i Giner (; born 23 January 1969) is a Spanish actress. She is known for her performances in films such as ''Belle Époque'' (for which she won the Goya Award for Best Actress), '' Black Tears'' and '' Pan's Labyrinth''. Career Gil ...

as Carmen *

Silvio Orlando Silvio Orlando (born 30 June 1957) is an Italian actor. Orlando was born and raised in Naples, where he started acting in theatre in 1976. He made his film debut in 1988 with a supporting role in the comedy '' Kamikazen: Last Night in Milan'', ...

as Ringmaster

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 2002 films 2002 drama films 2002 multilingual films 2002 romantic drama films 2000s romantic fantasy films Italian fantasy films Russian fantasy films Romantic fantasy films Russian multilingual films German multilingual films Italian multilingual films Spanish multilingual films Russian romantic drama films Italian romantic drama films Russian-language romantic drama films