Universal russianness, or Gorky’s the Lower depths interpreted by Zamyatin interpreted by Renoir
This paper discusses a 1936 French film The Lower Depths based on the famous Maxim Gorky’s play and directed by Jean Renoir. The script was initially written by Evgeny Zamyatin and Jacques Companeez and then rewritten by Charles Spaak and Renoir. The first part of the paper is dedicated to the probl...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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A.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences
2018-03-01
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| Series: | Studia Litterarum |
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| Online Access: | http://studlit.ru/images/2018-3-1/Heller.pdf |
| _version_ | 1818756136713584640 |
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| author | Leonid Heller |
| author_facet | Leonid Heller |
| author_sort | Leonid Heller |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper discusses a 1936 French film The Lower Depths based on the famous Maxim Gorky’s play and directed by Jean Renoir. The script was initially written by Evgeny Zamyatin and Jacques Companeez and then rewritten by Charles Spaak and Renoir. The first part of the paper is dedicated to the problematic reception of this film that was due to its blurred Russian-French outlook and to its seeming infidelity to Gorky’s work. Further, the essay sheds light on the intricacy of the 1936 circumstances surrounding the film production. It also discusses the role that the Albatros production society whose technical crew was composed mostly of the Russian émigré specialists played in the making of the film. Such a crew, together with the fact that the original play and its screen adaptation were written by two émigré writers, endowed the film with “universal Russianness” of a sort. The last part of the paper attempts to clarify the complicated issue of the scenario by comparing its several script versions with the final version. The paper raises new questions concerning respective roles played by different authors of the adaptation in the production of The Lower Depths. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-18T05:50:15Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-186a104bfbe74b7cb2ccc20d31bba6a2 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2500-4247 2541-8564 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-18T05:50:15Z |
| publishDate | 2018-03-01 |
| publisher | A.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Studia Litterarum |
| spelling | doaj.art-186a104bfbe74b7cb2ccc20d31bba6a22022-12-21T21:18:56ZengA.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of SciencesStudia Litterarum2500-42472541-85642018-03-013119621110.22455/2500-4247-2018-3-1-196-211Universal russianness, or Gorky’s the Lower depths interpreted by Zamyatin interpreted by RenoirLeonid Heller0Lausanne UniversityThis paper discusses a 1936 French film The Lower Depths based on the famous Maxim Gorky’s play and directed by Jean Renoir. The script was initially written by Evgeny Zamyatin and Jacques Companeez and then rewritten by Charles Spaak and Renoir. The first part of the paper is dedicated to the problematic reception of this film that was due to its blurred Russian-French outlook and to its seeming infidelity to Gorky’s work. Further, the essay sheds light on the intricacy of the 1936 circumstances surrounding the film production. It also discusses the role that the Albatros production society whose technical crew was composed mostly of the Russian émigré specialists played in the making of the film. Such a crew, together with the fact that the original play and its screen adaptation were written by two émigré writers, endowed the film with “universal Russianness” of a sort. The last part of the paper attempts to clarify the complicated issue of the scenario by comparing its several script versions with the final version. The paper raises new questions concerning respective roles played by different authors of the adaptation in the production of The Lower Depths.http://studlit.ru/images/2018-3-1/Heller.pdfJean RenoirEvgeni ZamyatinMaxim GorkyThe Lower DepthsFrench cinemaRussian émigré culturecultural transferscreenplay writingscreen adaptationscenario authorship |
| spellingShingle | Leonid Heller Universal russianness, or Gorky’s the Lower depths interpreted by Zamyatin interpreted by Renoir Studia Litterarum Jean Renoir Evgeni Zamyatin Maxim Gorky The Lower Depths French cinema Russian émigré culture cultural transfer screenplay writing screen adaptation scenario authorship |
| title | Universal russianness, or Gorky’s the Lower depths interpreted by Zamyatin interpreted by Renoir |
| title_full | Universal russianness, or Gorky’s the Lower depths interpreted by Zamyatin interpreted by Renoir |
| title_fullStr | Universal russianness, or Gorky’s the Lower depths interpreted by Zamyatin interpreted by Renoir |
| title_full_unstemmed | Universal russianness, or Gorky’s the Lower depths interpreted by Zamyatin interpreted by Renoir |
| title_short | Universal russianness, or Gorky’s the Lower depths interpreted by Zamyatin interpreted by Renoir |
| title_sort | universal russianness or gorky s the lower depths interpreted by zamyatin interpreted by renoir |
| topic | Jean Renoir Evgeni Zamyatin Maxim Gorky The Lower Depths French cinema Russian émigré culture cultural transfer screenplay writing screen adaptation scenario authorship |
| url | http://studlit.ru/images/2018-3-1/Heller.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT leonidheller universalrussiannessorgorkysthelowerdepthsinterpretedbyzamyatininterpretedbyrenoir |