Foreign films which are liked by Soviet audiences. Photo

These films – leading film distribution.

“Iron curtain” of the Soviet firmly protected the audience from most foreign films and provided a favorable condition for domestic films. However, some lucky ones managed to break through the censorship barrier and become the darlings of the tens of millions of Soviet viewers. What foreign films have enjoyed in the Soviet Union the greatest success? Together with the portal Film.ru we remembered fifteen of these paintings. Enjoyable nostalgia for those who witnessed their triumph.

15. “King Kong lives” (1986, USA, 53,6 million viewers)

The sequel of the remake of “king Kong” (recall that the original “king Kong” is a legendary blockbuster, 1933) was released in America ten years after the premiere of the first film, and tape John Hillerman not only failed miserably at the box office, but it was crushed by critics. In the USSR, however, a remake and sequel were released at the same time, in 1988, when perestroika led to the easing of censorship and a demonstration of this film in our country became possible. Therefore, the audience to failure sacrificed cinemas on sessions of both tapes, and “king Kong lives” looked at six million viewers more than “king Kong” in 1976. Also the success of those tapes was because we had nothing else to compare – the old “king Kong” in the USSR, almost nobody saw. I wonder what the record would put “king Kong lives” if the Soviet audience by that time for the most part looked “Terminator”, where the famous movie star of Guillermina Linda Hamilton?

14. “Zita and Gita” (1972, India, is 55.2 million viewers)

When the Soviet Union tried to influence the Indian politics, he made a bid for the Indira Gandhi – daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India. Party Gandhi was secretly funded by the KGB, and Indira came to power in 1966, reciprocated and began to actively develop political and financial relationships of his country with the Soviet Union. Due to this, in our country gushed bollywood tape. Among them was a Comedy-romantic hit Indian rental, talk about separated at birth twin sisters. In the USSR, “Zita and Gita” in 1976, enjoyed almost more popular than in 1972 in India. The names of the sisters, played by Hemou Malini and dubbed Nadezhda Rumyantseva, we have become a household name. Although Indian cinema was, frankly, not Hollywood for its brutality, the Soviet censors still cut from “Zita and Gita” a few scenes, which they considered “too bloody”.

13. “Zorro” (1975, Italy-France, 55,3 million viewers)

Amazing charming French actor Alain Delon has become a regular “visitor” of the Soviet cinema, due to the fact that his career began with the highly acclaimed criticism of our social feeds like drama “Rocco and his brothers”. But, of course, for the Soviet spectators beauty Delon was much more important than its political orientation. Therefore, when the Frenchman switched from intelligent movie movie on adventure and entertainment, by inertia also purchased for the Soviet hire, Delon popularity in the USSR was off the scale. If in Italy and France another variation on the story of Zorro almost fell (in particular, because Zorro was an American, not a European character), then in the Soviet Union almost all the walls were covered with the letter “Z” – a symbol of a noble hero, protecting the common people from oppression. Again, other movies about Zorro our audiences were not famous, and heroes of fencers we have adored thanks to the popularity of “the Three Musketeers”.

12. “Winnetou — son Inchu-Chuna” (1963, West Germany-Yugoslavia-Italy, 56 million viewers)

In the USSR foreign films about Indians associated with the name of Gojko Mitic, artist, key roles taken in the GDR westerns. However, the most successful in the Soviet rental tape of this kind was filmed in West Germany, and Mitic, who then still lived in his native Yugoslavia, played an unnamed only in her cameo role. Why did it happen? Because “winnetou – son Inchu-Chuna” (the two-part film, “stitched” from two West German productions, “winnetou” and “winnetou – son Inchu-Chuna”) in the Soviet hire no in 1963, when it was released in Germany, but only in 1975. By the time the Soviet audience were already overfed ribbons with Gojko Mitic, and “winnetou” seemed simultaneously familiar and refreshingly new, with a spectacular Frenchman Pierre Brice in the title role of the noble Indian. Interestingly, by the time when we saw this film in West Germany, to shoot and to watch westerns anymore. Although the series about winnetou was based on the novels of the popular German author Karl May.

11. “The taming of the shrew” (1980, Italy, 56 million viewers)

At the time of release in 1983 in the Soviet hire “taming of the shrew,” our audience already know and love Italians Adriano Celentano and as an actor and as a musician. If his first truly successful painting “Serafino”, awarded Golden prize at the Moscow international film festival, 1969, the Soviet public is needed to explain and justify, in the sessions, the romantic Comedy “the taming of the shrew”, the audience already indignant, and admired the way the Director notesnote character Celentano – rough country guy with a heart of gold. The part in the film Ornella Muti and hilarious script and direction of the directing Duo Castellano-Pipolo (real names Franco Castellano and Giuseppe Moccia) guaranteed feed enormous fees in Soviet theaters. Naturally, sex scenes and some violent scenes were cut out of the picture. By the way, Castellano-Pipolo had co-sponsored the Comedy Eldar Ryazanov’s “Unbelievable adventures of Italians in Russia”.

10. “The four Musketeers” (1974, France, 56.6 million viewers)

The most popular Soviet music film “D’artagnan and three Musketeers” appeared on the air in 1979, a year after the Soviet premiere of the French Comedy “Four Musketeers”. Of course, it would be more honest if Mikhail Boyarsky and his colleagues competed in the hearts of Soviet audience with the characters “honest” British novels of Richard Lester’s Three Musketeers and Four Musketeers, and not with the heroes of the French parody Andre Unable, where the main characters were faithful servants of the Musketeers, performed by musicians from the band Les Charlots. But as they say, and so well turned out – both projects became big hits. Recall that Unabel Director was also very popular Soviet trilogy about Fantomas.

9. “Avenger” (1976, India, 60 million viewers)

Due to the lack in the Soviet box office blockbuster Western action-Thriller films like James bond rolling Champions could become their “budget” Indian counterparts. For example, the bollywood film “Avenger”, which tells about a young man who roams the world and destroys the smugglers who killed his father-a policeman. Of course, since it’s an Indian film, love in the plot of “the Avengers” also played a big role. But first and foremost it is an international action-adventure with a visit to the United States, Spain, France and Switzerland and so on. And, of course, not spoiled by the international tourism the Soviet audience did not respond. The main character of the film was played by Rishi Kapoor, previously starring in “Bobby,” the other Indian hit of the Soviet hire.

8. “Disco dancer” (1982, India, 60,9 million viewers)

Soviet audience had not seen the main film of the disco era Hollywood “Saturday night Fever” John Badami, which was first made famous by John Travolta and made a very popular white suit his character. But who needs Travolta, if in Soviet cinema it was possible to admire the sultry Mithun Chakraborty in musical-melodrama crime bollywood “disco Dancer”? The white suit Chakraborty was exactly the same, and danced the Indian the envy of many, and the songs from the movie at the time became hits. The Soviet guys tape was popular not so much because of her music, but because of its action scenes – of course, very modest by Hollywood standards.

7. “White dress” (1973, Egypt, 61 million viewers)

At one time Egypt had very good relations with the Soviet Union, and the Soviet Union spent a lot of effort and means, to bind itself to the Egyptian people and Egyptian politicians. But how many wolves do not feed, it is still looking to the West. After the President of Egypt in 1970 was Anwar Sadat, the country gradually began to shift to the United States. It ended with the fact that in 1976, Sadat denounced them as the Agreement on friendship and cooperation with the Soviet Union. Fortunately, Egyptian melodrama “White dress” about love of the poor girl and the rich heir had in the same year to get into the Soviet box office, and soured international relations did not prevent her to collect a huge box office. Part of the success of the tape was related to the fact that our public by that time well knew the leading lady of Naglu Fathi in her previous roles in sentimental movie. And, of course, stories about the “heavy women’s share” has always been very popular with Soviet spectators.

6. “Bobby” (1973, India, 62.6 million viewers)

Of all the films in the hit parade “Bobby” is, perhaps, the most significant pattern for its national cinema. However, the bollywood film Raj Kapoor not to call an artistic masterpiece. But his tremendous financial success has laid the Foundation for a whole genre of Indian cinema – a teenage romantic-musical tapes about love that transcends class and religious barriers. In the case of “Bobby” the main characters were wealthy young man from a Hindu family and a poor girl from a long line of fishermen-Christians. By the way, Bobby was the name of the girl, not the guy, because it’s a Christian name. The film was awarded a number of national awards, two of which received starring Rishi Kapoor (son of Director) and Dimple Kapadia. In Russia the film enjoyed almost as great success as in India.

5. “Spartacus” (1960, USA, 63 million viewers)

Hollywood movie traveled to the Soviet hire with much more difficulty than European cinema, and therefore for the Soviet people was a big surprise that rental got an epic historical film by Stanley Kubrick, with kirk Douglas in the title role. Neither before nor after the tape Kubrick to the Soviet cinema did not reach. The casket, however, just opened. Rebellious slave Spartacus since the Stalinist era was for the Soviet Union almost a national hero, and the authors of the script of the film were the two American Communist party, Howard Fast and Dalton TRUMBO. In addition, Kubrick was once considered a “progressive” Director. So for “Spartacus” in 1967 he made an exception. It was a great gift for Soviet viewers who were finally able to see the screen of his Roman idol, the predecessor of the Russian revolutionaries.

4. “Gold McKenna” (1969, USA, 63 million viewers)

The Soviet audience could arbitrarily much love westerns from the GDR and the FRG, but she knew exactly what country westerns real. Therefore, when in 1974, Soviet officials admitted to cinemas Western Briton George. Lee Thompson, known for his Pro-socialist views, in the movie, skipped classes, even the most “faithful” members of the Komsomol. And many have admitted that they can’t watch and love the European “fakes” after I saw a picture with Gregory peck and Omar Sharif. Just think – in “Gold McKenna” you could see a naked Indian woman! This, of course, was a tremendous culture shock. And law enforcement agencies with horror noted that in the country, a growing number of bullies, and that many of the young criminals associate themselves with Colorado, sinister bandit performed by Sharif.

3. “The Vagabond” (1951, India, 63,7 million viewers)

Indian cinema appeared and began to develop actively in pre-war years. Already in the 1930-ies it has released two hundred paintings a year. However, at that time it was purely a national phenomenon. The global recognition of the bollywood films have started to gain after the war. Among the first international hits of the Indian was a passionate crime-a romantic Rama Raj Kapoor’s “Vagabond”, in which the Director himself played a major role. The way his character was partly inspired by the Tramp of Charlie Chaplin’s films, although Raj is a hero much more aggressive than any of Chaplin played positive characters. “Drifter” has set a rental record in India and became a hit in several countries, including the USSR and Turkey. In our country, the tape fell because of its socialist connotations (its main character – a poor man who becomes a criminal because of their poverty). The Indians still reckon “the Tramp” among the most successful pictures of its national cinema.

2. “The magnificent seven” (1960, USA, 67 million viewers)

At the beginning of the 1960s the relations between the USSR and the USA there has been a discharge. Nikita Khrushchev first met with the new American President John Kennedy, and the meeting went so well that in the Soviet hire are allowed to issue the American Western movie genre, which was already familiar to Soviet audiences in imported from Germany captured copies of the us tapes. The choice fell on “the Magnificent seven” – a Hollywood remake of the classic paintings of Akira Kurosawa’s “Seven samurai”, which was felt socialist subtext of the original movie (cowboys protect peasants from bandits). But by the time when, in 1962, “Seven”, has been translated and released, relations between the countries went wrong. Therefore, with the filing of Khrushchev personally on the film in the press struck the shaft of frankly ideological criticism. The tape is scolded not because she is bad, but for the fact that she’s American. However, her fees were still fantastic. In order to avoid such ideological failure and still satisfy the audience’s love for westerns, the Soviet Union began to buy the already mentioned German films about cowboys and Indians. But to break the record of “Seven” failed. Even the American “Gold McKenna” ‘t have lasted.

1. “Yesenia” (1971, Mexico, with 91.4 million viewers)

No dearer story for the Soviet people than the story of a girl from the distant Latin America. In the 1980s it was confirmed by “Slave Izaura”, in the 1990s a whole series of “soap” television hits, and in 1975 all the previous and future competitors in the fight for rental “gold” trampled passionate story about a Mexican Gypsy, who falls in love with a handsome military. Yes, Eseniya surpassed on fees not only foreign hits of the Soviet hire, but also our own movie like the main domestic blockbuster “pirates of the XX century”. For Mexico it was quite an ordinary drama film based on the eponymous television series, created by Yolandi Dulce Vargas, a famous Mexican writer of comic books and soap operas. But to us, these paintings were made only occasionally, and the audience has invested in “Yesenia” all my unspent love romantic sagas about Gypsies and “Cinderella”. Plus, of course, the age-old Soviet desire to zagranicznej. It is significant that released a year later Gypsy Soviet film “Gypsies go to heaven” was very successful, but still much less profitable than “Yesenia” (64,9 million viewers). Transcarpathia is certainly good, but not Mexico!