There is no human God for garbage! Gulag for more than 30 years of its existence has become a household name. A kingdom of absolute darkness and hopelessness, despair and darkness. A place where almost no one comes back. One of the most brutal systems created by humanity. In the history of the Gulag from 1922 to 1960, the forms of resistance varied depending on the camp, its regime and the category of prisoners. It is clear that this theme was tubated until the 90s, but then the film versions of camp life flooded like a cornucopia. Any historical event can be played for the benefit of one side or the other. The premiere of the film “Chervonny” took place on August 24, and was timed to the holiday of the formation of Ukrainian statehood (August 21, 1991). The film says it is "based on real events." At the beginning of the film there is an exact temporary date - 1947, and a sign above the gates of the camp: "USSR Management of Urlagers".
There was no such management in the NKVD-MVD system. This is an abstract place, which includes the total paraphernalia of any Gulag camp. At the same time, the picture shows not any, but a special camp N6. But... Rechlag (full name "River Camp"), also Special Camp No. 6, Osoblag No. 6 - camp for political prisoners with the center in Vorkuta Komi ASSR was organized only on August 27, 1948 on the basis of camp units of Vorkutlag. However, it was in this camp in July-August 1953 that the uprising of prisoners occurred, similar to which (May-August 1953) took place in Norilsk in the special camp No. 2 "Gorny". It is not entirely clear why the director needed to mislead the audience, because until 1947 the only uprising occurred in January 1942 in the Lesoreid lagoon near the village of Ust-Usa (Komi ASSR).
The film reflects the very remote motives of the Vorkuta uprising, the causes of which are not at all those shown by director Zaza Buadze in his congratulatory “video card” worth 20 million hryvnias. The reasons for the uprising are quite simple: Stalin’s death in March 1953 was welcomed in the camps. Prisoners waited for the regime to weaken and the cases of innocent prisoners to be reviewed. But the amnesty (about which the prisoner with an accordion speaks in the film) at the end of March was given only to criminals and prisoners with short terms of imprisonment (and there were very few of them in Rechlag: 2-3 people in the brigade). The expectations of the political prisoners were betrayed, and this caused frustration, resentment, anger and sharply accelerated the beginning of the uprising. However, the term “rebellion” used to describe both events is not entirely accurate. The rebels did not have weapons, and did not succumb to various provocations to active actions.
All of the above are real events. Now let's see what Zaza Buadze did. The script is based on a novel by contemporary Ukrainian writer-fiction writer Andrei Kokotyukha, who considers himself a Russian-speaking writer because he writes in two languages. Sophia Filonenko, a researcher of Ukrainian mass literature, calls Kokotyukha the father of the “Ukrainian Gothic detective”, although the author himself believes that his texts contain rather neo-Gothic, directly related to topical social and social problems of Ukraine, and the appeal to Gothic and folklore generally coincides with the traditions of ancient Ukrainian literature. The novel “Red” was written by Koktyukha in 2012. To date, the writer has already completed the “Rebel trilogy”, consisting of three novels about the protagonist named Chervonny. Therefore, we should expect a continuation of the saga soon.
Kokotyukha “is an adherent of the artistically bizarrely fictional (“mythologically entertaining”) component of historical works without respecting the reconstructive faction.” I didn't say that, it was a quote. And in this quote lies the whole "global" meaning of the film "Red". On the page in genres there is a whole list, but there is no main genre: “fantasy”. Now it is extremely fashionable literary genre as alternative history. So, Kokotyukha wrote an alternative story about the Vorkuta uprising. I wrote this because I live in Ukraine. And the director did it because he also lives in Ukraine. I'm going to look at the film through an alternative story.
Every time has its heroes. It is, and there is nothing we can do about it. Today, the heroes in Ukrainian films are increasingly becoming “resistance fighters” from the UPA. So in the center of the plot are two people, two soldiers, two Ukrainians: Daniil Chervonny and Viktor Gurov. One was born in Western Ukraine, the other in Eastern Ukraine. For one, Soviet power occupied his land, for another, the same power - both father and mother. Clear directorial priorities are immediately visible. Chervonny is an uncompromising fighter for an independent Ukraine, Gurov is an unstable, wavering man who does not hold on to his ideals. Red - rebelliousness and disobedience, Gurov - conciliation and lack of ideas. For deep psychology, this contrast is too contrasting. Anyone who knows anything about history understands why Banderites looked more united in the camps.
It's simple - they always fought "against the Reds", so they fight (as they can) here. Another thing is the former military pilot Gurov. He is not a coward, he is not a traitor, he got here by mistake, and it is a thousand times harder for him to be in the camp. Perhaps the director should pay more attention to such internal torments, rather than turning the character into a simplified scheme. The main negative character is the head of the camp. The figure is disgusting and disgusting. The true creation of darkness and hell. This figure, according to the creators of the picture, should symbolize a totalitarian regime. But not just her. The symbolism in the picture abounds. This is primarily the red-brown soil in and around the camp. Such a "Martian landscape" should emphasize the bloodiness of the system. Therefore, it is not by chance that the director chose a hundred-year-old abandoned mine in the village of Gannivka, closed in 1917.
Beautiful music for the film was written by Italian composer Franco Eco. Special mention deserves the camera work of Alexander Kristalovich – expressive shots at any time of the day. In general, the exterior of the picture is almost perfect, and the interior has already been mentioned above. There is only one thing left to add: “A fairy tale is a lie, and in it is a hint...”