I heard Apricot Flan's call to
post favorite soviet films. I'll start with Mimino which is my favorite film of all time. This is a very funny movie if you understand the cultural differences between Russians and other nationalities of the Caucuses. I am nostalgic when watching Mimino because the time and the country where the movie took place no longer exist. Under the Soviet Union, there was a great mix of cultures and there was near universal equality. My family has both Armenians and Azeris, so I see these jokes and teasing amongst my relatives all the time. The movie also contains many subtle jokes about Russia and the Soviet Union. I'll attempt to explain a few of them below. Maybe you'll enjoy the film more if you understand the dynamic between the nationalities and the time in which the movie took place. (Mimino at
Wikipedia and at
IMDB. You can purchase
Mimino subtitled at Amazon.com or you can
rent it from Netflix.)
At about minute 7:00 in Mimino
scene three from youtube, Mimino, the Georgian, meets Rubik, the Armenian where they are forced to share a hotel room. Their argument continues into
scene four.
Mimino Scene Three
At minute 6:30 in (
Mimino scene 5 at youtube) Mimino and Rubik are walking back to Rubik's new car so that Rubik can show it to Mimino. Rubik is shocked when he does not see the car and exclaims that it is stolen. Mimino asks if he is sure and Rubik explains that he remembers there was a trash can and a lady smoking where he parked his car. Similar to "Ironia Sudbi ili S Legkim Parom" this is a joke that all Soviet streets look the same, but it is also a joke that the humorous Rubik would try to remember where he parked his car using a lady smoking as a landmark.
Mimino Scene Five
Georgians, Armenians, and Azeris always joke with each other whose country is better. At the the start of the
clip six, Rubik invites Mimino (who is from Georgia) to come to Ribik's village in Armenia (Dilijan) where his mother will make dolma, which is a traditional dish of meat wrapped in grape leaves. Rubik asks Mimino if he likes dolma, and Mimino answers "No." And Rubik comments that it is because you implying Gorgians) don't know how to cook dolma. Mimino sarcasticly responds that "And tell me that we don't know how to make satzivi." (Satzivi is a traditional Georgian dish.) And the argument over their countries has now begun in earnest. Next Rubik says "In our kitchen when you open the tap, the second best mineral water in the world comes out." Mimino sarcastically asks if the first place water is in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. Rubik answers that the first place water is in San Francisco -- anything but Georgia. Mimino of course must bring up Borzhomi water from Georgia.
Mimino Scene Six
All the clips are available on YouTube when you search for "
Mimino Kino." If you don't get the jokes, post the parts that you don't understand and I will try to explain them. Enjoy my favorite Soviet film and I will post more favorites later.
Linear Mode
