Three novellas about murder, violence and death. But mainly about males and females, infants and old people. About paradoxes of human nature and human behaviour. A dark comedy; so dark that its humour makes you shiver and feel scared of your own laughter. ‘I don’t like men. I don’t like women. I don’t like children. I’m not fond of people. I would give this planet a zero mark.’ This famous statement by Ofa (Renata Litvinova), the femme fatale and serial killer from the second novella, is wrongly considered by some critics to be a ‘message’ of the film and even Muratova’s personal motto. As a result she has been accused of misanthropy. But that’s just a common misconception of the highly provocative nature of Three Stories. In fact, this film is a brilliant example of Muratova’s ‘dangerous method’, which unmasks and undermines common morals in a very playful way, without any fear or sentimentality.
Film details
Countries of production
Russia, Ukraine
Year
1997
Festival edition
IFFR 2013
Length
105'
Medium/Format
35mm
Language
Russian
Premiere status
None
Director
Kira Muratova
Producer
Aleksandr Bokovikov, Igor Tolstunov
Screenplay
Vera Storozheva, Renata Litvinova, Sergei Chetvertkov
Cinematography
Gennady Karyuk
Editing
Valentina Oleynik
Production design
Evgeny Golubenko
Principal cast
Renata Litvinova, Sergei Makovetsky
Production company
Odessa Film Studio, Ministry of Culture and Arts of Ukraine, PROFIT