Ирина Белоусенко – Hit.Media. Space young journalism

For those who are tired of staying at home
What to watch when unable to travel, but still crave the sense of adventure

Reading time 6 minutes

Going on a trip is never a bad idea. However, what can one do if stuck at work instead of walking along the streets of Paris at night or drinking cocktails on a Turkish beach? We present a compilation of 5 films that allow you to go on a small journey without leaving your home.

“Eat Pray Love” (2010), directed by Ryan Murphy

Кадр из фильма «Ешь, молись, люби» — Shot from the film “Eat, Pray, Love”

It is a famous adaptation of the memoirs of American writer Elizabeth Gilbert. The main character of the film, a middle-aged woman named Elizabeth, realizes one day that she is not living the life she dreamed of. She files for divorce after eight years of marriage and embarks on a journey in search of the meaning of life, visiting three destinations: Italy, India and Bali. In each of these countries, Elizabeth meets new people, tests her physical and spiritual abilities, and, of course, enjoys delicious food. The film offers a palette of completely different landscapes from distant corners of the planet, and Julia Roberts in the lead role becomes the best guide to cinematic tourist routes.

“Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (2008), directed by Woody Allen

Кадр из фильма «Вики Кристина Барселона» — Shot from the film “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”

It tells the story of two American women, Vicky and Cristina, who decide to spend their summer holidays in Barcelona. The trip becomes even more interesting, and the city attracts the girls even more, when they meet a local artist, Antonio. Best friends are drawn into a love triangle when both start receiving attention from Antonio. The situation becomes even more complicated when the artist’s ex-wife unexpectedly appears. The summer romance becomes more serious and complicated, but does not lose its attractive summer mood. And beautiful views of Barcelona and walks of the heroes along recognizable famous places of the city only add attraction to the short but bright love story.

“Midnight in Paris” (2001), dir. Woody Allen

Кадр из фильма «Полночь в Париже» — Shot from the film “Midnight in Paris”

It is another ode to love for Europe from Woody Allen. This time the story tells of the screenwriter Gil Pender, who flies to Paris with his fiancee to visit her parents. By coincidence, at one point Gil finds himself completely alone on the night streets of Paris. However, his solitude does not last long – a stranger in an antique car suspiciously reminiscent of F.S. Fitzgerald invites the hero to take a ride with him. The trip ends with Gil magically transported to the 1920s. Now every night he runs off to wander the night streets of Paris in the company of outstanding people of the past century. Paris in this film is represented in all its beauty – from cafes in the Art Deco style of the 1920s to the Champs-Élysées and the modern illumination of the Eiffel Tower.

“Lost in Translation” (2003), dir. Sofia Coppola

Кадр из фильма «Трудности перевода» — Frame from the film “Lost in Translation”

A film for those who are no longer surprised by European holidays. Famous actor Bob Harris and recent college graduate Charlotte – Americans who find themselves in the heart of Japan, in Tokyo. They meet in the hotel bar when both of them are unbearably lonely in the noisy metropolis. Charlotte is upset that she rarely sees her photographer husband, who is constantly disappearing on shoots, and Bob is going through a midlife crisis, disappointed in his marriage and career. Two lost people in a short time become each other’s main support and shoulder to cry on. This is a story not about love, but about a very touching and fleeting friendship surrounded by Japanese skyscrapers.

“The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” (2013), dir. Ben Stiller

Кадр из фильма «Невероятная жизнь Уолтера Митти» — Shot from the film “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”

Walter Mitty is an ordinary office worker holding an ordinary position in the “Life” magazine’s illustration department. He spices up his routine life with adventures that he ventures into in his head, existing between the mundane reality and the fantastic fictional events. However, a series of unexpected events force Walter to step out of his comfort zone and go in search of a photographer, who requires a unique picture for the magazine cover. The Himalayas, Greenland, Iceland – all these places are in the itinerary of the newly-minted traveler.

Ирина Белоусенко

Beloved Game of the 80s
On the Inventor of Tetris and the Distributor Wars

Reading time 6 minutes

In the 1980s, the arcade game industry flourished in the United States. It was a standard cultural practice to visit gaming arcades where children and adults spent their leisure time. The influx of visitors increased even further after the introduction of a simple yet engaging game called “Tetris.” Nowadays, hardly anyone is unfamiliar with Tetris as it has been reissued several times, and almost everyone has manipulated the colorful blocks on their screens at least once in their lives. However, only a few know the man who gifted this game to the world and the battles different media magnates fought for it.

Алексей Пажитнов, создатель «Тетриса» — Alexey Pajitnov, creator of Tetris

Contrary to popular belief, Tetris was not invented in the US or even in Europe. The creator of Tetris is Alexey Pajitnov, a Soviet programmer who worked at the Computing Center of the Soviet Academy of Sciences. The idea for Tetris arose in Alexey’s mind in 1984 when he was introduced to the puzzle game of American mathematician Solomon Golomb, “Pentomino”. The essence of Pentomino was to assemble one large figure from several small ones. Inspired by Golomb’s concept, Alexey decided to create something similar but tweak the concept slightly. In his game, the figures had to be assembled in a hypothetical “cup” with the possibility of collapsing into straight rows. The user had the ability to rotate falling elements at their discretion. Soviet computers, however, lacked the computing power to process figures made up of five cubes, as in Golomb’s puzzle. Thus, the number of composite parts in one figure was reduced to four, and thus, Tetris acquired its name (from the Greek “tetra” – four).

Tetris quickly spread in Moscow and beyond the Soviet Union thanks to pirate copies. Around this time, Robert Stein, a Hungarian software importer, learned about the game. During Stein’s trip to Moscow, in an attempt to obtain the exclusive right to the game, Alexey unexpectedly gave Tetris as a gift to the entrepreneur. Stein, in turn, construed the gesture as an unconditional transfer of ownership of the game and permission to dispose of the invention of the Soviet programmer at his discretion.

From that moment on, a war for the right to publish Tetris and earn money with it started among big game distributors. “The Tetris War” involved large companies such as Mirrosoft and Spectrum Holobyte, to which Asian segment manufacturers Atari Games and Nintendo later joined. They all tried to obtain the rights to the game first from Stein and then, after learning that the Hungarian entrepreneur was not the actual owner of Tetris, went to negotiate in Moscow. Interestingly, representatives of different companies even flew to the capital at approximately the same time, so in the hallways of ELOKA, where Alexey Pajitnov went to work, they were guided into different rooms so that competitors would not bump into each other.

The offer from Hank Rogers, who came to Moscow as a representative of Nintendo, interested Pajitnov the most. In the end, on March 21, 1989, all rights to the Tetris version for game consoles were transferred to the Japanese company.

Алексей Пажитнов (слева) и Хэнк Роджерс (справа) — Alexey Pajitnov (left) and Hank Rogers (right)

The history of the battle between the business giants of the gaming industry for Tetris is actually much more extensive and can take up some time. To be precise, it takes one hour and fifty-eight minutes to watch the film “Tetris” by John Baird, which became available on the network on March 31, 2023. The film details the competition between companies and the risks that Alexey Pajitnov encountered while attempting to make the game accessible to users worldwide. It is worth mentioning that the role of the inventor was played by Russian theatre and film actor Nikita Yefremov, despite the fact that the film was produced by studios from the United Kingdom and the United States. The film can be watched online on the Apple TV+ platform.

Никита Ефремов в роли Алексея Пажитнова на кадре из фильма «Тетрис», 2023 — Nikita Efremov as Alexei Pajitnov in a still from the film Tetris, 2023

Ирина Белоусенко

Daddy’s girl
A Collection of Films About Fathers and Daughters

Reading time 6 minutes

World cinema is full of films about complicated relationships between parents and their children. However, for some reason, it is much easier to find a film about a mother with a daughter or a father with a son than to see the interaction between a parent and a child of the opposite sex. This is especially true for girls, who are given much less attention in cinema than the difficult lives of boys.

That’s why we present to you a selection of 5 films about the struggles and joys of relationships between fathers and daughters.

“Sunshine of Mine” (2022), directed by Charlotte Wells.

Кадр из фильма «Солнце моё» — Shot from the film “Sunshine of Mine”

The film that ranked first in Sight and Sound’s list of best films of the year. This partly autobiographical film tells the story of Sophie, an 11-year-old Scottish girl who spends her summer vacation in Turkey with her father. Sophie’s parents have divorced, so for the little girl, this trip becomes one of the few opportunities to find out what her father is living for and what he is thinking about. The complexity of the trip is compounded by the fact that Sophie is in prepubescence, and her father is going through a midlife crisis. Now these two close but distant people have to learn to coexist together, discovering new facets of their relationship.

“The Father” (2020), directed by Florian Zeller

Кадр из фильма «Отец» — Shot from the film “The Father”

Anthony is an elderly man suffering from dementia. His difficult personality makes it difficult for him to get along with his caretakers, so his daughter Anne takes on most of the responsibility for caring for him. Anthony’s illness provokes countless arguments, but Anne stays by his side despite all the pain his words cause her. Essentially, this film is a psychological thriller that doesn’t rely on plot alone. The conclusion may surprise you, but not as much as the interaction between Olivia Colman and Anthony Hopkins, who portrayed the complexity of the father-daughter relationship in an impossible situation. By the way, at the 2021 Oscars, Anthony Hopkins was awarded Best Actor specifically for his work on this film.

“Ice 2” (2020), directed by Jora Kryzhovnikov.

Кадр из фильма «Лёд 2» — Shot from the film “Ice 2”

A sequel to the successful 2018 film “Ice.” Figure skater Nadya and hockey player Sasha, the main characters of the film, have finally married and are planning to have a child. However, the birth is difficult, and as a result, Nadya dies. The film tells the story of how Sasha learns to be a father and cope with all the difficulties of parenthood on his own. And when his daughter grows up, he also tries to figure out where the line between caring and overprotection lies and how not to let his fears harm his little daughter.

“The Whale” (2022), directed by Darren Aronofsky

Кадр из фильма «Кит» — Shot from the film “The Whale”

Charlie lives with extreme obesity, which developed as a result of compulsive eating due to the loss of his loved one. He walks with difficulty and lectures his literature students with the camera turned off because he is ashamed of his appearance. However, his regular and gloomy routine changes when his teenage daughter decides to contact him. Ellie is upset with her father because he once chose a new relationship over his family, but nonetheless begins secretly visiting him. Now Ellie and Charlie are practically starting from scratch and trying to build a relationship burdened with one’s sense of guilt and the other’s childhood resentments.

“Gifted” (2017), directed by Marc Webb.

Кадр из фильма «Одарённая» — Shot from the film “Gifted”

The film is about the fact that sometimes the role of “Dad” can be played by a non-biological father. Frank takes guardianship of Mary, his deceased sister’s little daughter. At some point, the girl starts showing outstanding abilities in mathematics. A real struggle begins for Mary because part of the family believes that it is now necessary to focus on educating the little genius. However, Frank wants Mary to grow up as a “normal” child, surrounded by friends, rather than just books. The desire to give the girl a peaceful childhood, along with his own fears, forces Frank and Mary’s small family to open up to each other from a completely new perspective.

Ирина Белоусенко

“The Challenge” of the Global Film Industry
How the First Film in Space was Made

Reading time 5 minutes

On April 20, 2023, Russian screens premiered the film “The Challenge” by director Klim Shipenko. The story of talented surgeon Evgeniya Belyaeva could have been just another film about the selfless work of doctors, if not for one crucial detail. Part of the movie was shot aboard the International Space Station (ISS), where the director and lead actress spent 12 days filming.

Клим Шипенко, режиссёр фильма «Вызов» — Klim Shipenko, director of the film “Challenge”

For Klim Shipenko, “The Challenge” was a continuation of his love for space-themed films after the successful release of “Salyut-7” in 2017. According to the director, it was precisely his reluctance to say goodbye to space that led him to contemplate a new project, this time without the green screen and with actual footage from a real space station. So, when the production company Yellow, Black & White, and First Channel’s CEO, Konstantin Ernst, approached him with an offer to take on a space project, Shipenko agreed without hesitation.

Only two additional people could be sent to the ISS for filming, the director and the lead actress. More than 3,000 applications were submitted for the lead female role, from which only about 20 were selected. Actress Yulia Peresild, who eventually starred as the main protagonist, initially did not participate in the casting as she was busy with another project. However, all the selected actresses failed the required medical examination, and after prolonged tests and exams, Peresild landed the role of a space surgeon.

Фото со съёмочной площадки «Вызова», 2023 — Photo from the set of “The Challenge”, 2023

Preparations for the shoot took several months on Earth. During this time, the director and lead actress were trained at the space center, studying equipment, taking exams on the ISS structure, and rehearsing the necessary actions that could be useful during launch, docking, and return to Earth. Klim Shipenko had to lose more than 15 kilograms to meet the necessary medical requirements. On the ISS, he acted as the film and art director, cameraman, and makeup artist. On October 5, a film crew of two and a backup crew of two professional astronauts were sent into space.

Юлия Пересильд на кадре, снятом на борту МКС — Yulia Peresild in a frame taken aboard the ISS

To organize a full-fledged shooting process, special film equipment was delivered to the ISS. In addition to cameras, sound recording and lighting equipment, some non-obvious items were also brought, such as a rugby helmet. As Yulia Peresild later recalled, Klim Shipenko needed a helmet, as he frequently flew backward in weightlessness. Without such improvised protection, his “chance of cutting off his head in the first 10 seconds of flight dramatically increased.” During their stay at the ISS, Peresild and Shipenko shot about 78 hours of footage, some of which made it into the film’s final cut. Filming took place both on the space station and during the crew’s launch and descent. According to the director, approximately 60% of the footage was improvised, as even with minute-by-minute planning for filming days on Earth, it was impossible to anticipate the impact of weightlessness and adaptation to the ISS. To avoid losing footage and to present the unique shots on the big screen, a communication channel was established with Earth, where all recordings were sent daily to the Space Center.

From March 31, the First Channel aired a series called “The Challenge: Firsts in Space” – a nine-part documentary project which detailed the making of the film. All episodes are available online on the First Channel’s website.

Ирина Белоусенко

Everything Everywhere All at Once
What made the film an Oscar favorite in 2023?

Reading time 10 minutes

Everything Everywhere All at Once – an American science fiction action comedy that will be released in the summer of 2022. The film is about a Chinese-American immigrant named Evelyn who discovers that she can connect with versions of herself from parallel worlds. With the help of this new ability, Evelyn must now prevent the destruction of the multiverse.

The Daniels directorial duo: Daniel Scheinert (right) and Daniel Kwan (left)

The film, directed by the “Daniels” duo, paid off several times at the box office, grossing over $130 million on a budget of about $20 million. The love of the audience and the positive reviews of film critics eventually contributed to the fact that “Everything Everywhere All at Once” was shortlisted as a nominee for the Academy Award. As a result, out of 11 nominations, the film won 7 at once and received the golden statuettes in the categories of “Best Film”, “Best Director”, “Best Actress”, “Best Supporting Actor”, “Best Supporting Actress”, “Best Original Screenplay” and “Best Editing”.

Let us find out together what made “Everything Everywhere All at Once” a box office hit and an Oscar 2023 record holder.

1. Best actress: a triumph of inclusion

Shot from the film "Everything is everywhere and at once." Michelle Yeoh as Evelyn Wong — Shot from the film “Everything is everywhere and at once.” Michelle Yeoh as Evelyn Wong

Michelle Yeoh, who plays the title role in Anywhere, is a Malaysian actress of Chinese descent who has been active in both Asian and Western cinema. Michelle became world famous for the project Crazy Rich Asians, a film adaptation of the novel of the same name, in which the actress played the smart and charismatic mother of the protagonist. In the film “Everywhere and at once” Michelle showed the full range of her acting abilities, as the plot is set in parallel universes. From world to world she slipped into the most diverse roles – from a contract killer to a cook or a lesbian with sausages instead of fingers.

One version of Evelyn Wong in a parallel universe

Critics note that besides the factor of Michelle’s acting talent, her origin allowed her to win. After all, Michelle Yeoh became the first woman of Asian descent to be awarded the title of “Best Actress”. In response to the criticism it had been receiving, the Academy strategically chose to award a statuette to a member of a national minority in order to maintain the film award’s rating. However, it is difficult to name such a factor as an unambiguous reason for presenting the Michelle Yeoh award. After all, the actress could really surprise the audience with acting, showing the full range of her skills on the screen.

2. Best Supporting Actor: The triumphant return of Jonathan Ké Kwan

Jonathan Ke Kwan in "Everything Everywhere" 2022 (left) and in "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" 1984 (right) — Jonathan Ke Kwan in “Everything Everywhere” 2022 (left) and in “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” 1984 (right)

Jonathan Ké Kwan rose to prominence in the film industry as a child as Harrison Ford’s boy assistant in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom in 1984. However, like many successful child actors, his career declined with age. Jonathan continued to work in film production, but as an assistant action choreographer and assistant director. The last film in which he took part as an actor before filming in “Everything Everywhere All at Once” was The Second Attempt, a 2002 fantasy drama that failed at the box office.

After the release of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, film critics predicted a glorious future for the little charismatic boy, and some fans of the franchise called him their favorite character. That is why the return of Ké Kwan to the big screens after 20 years has become a long-awaited and joyful event for many viewers. For the first time after a long break, Jonathan not only played an interesting and diverse role but also immediately received an Oscar for it. Given that the actor’s awards culminated in a touching hug with Harrison Ford, this story seems like a good plot for a movie.

3. Best Supporting Actress: Jamie Lee Curtis as Tax Clerk

The image of Jamie Lee Curtis in the movie "Everything is everywhere and at once" — Jamie Lee Curtis in the movie “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

Awarding Jamie Lee Curtis at the Oscars came as a surprise for many film critics. In one category, actresses such as Angela Bassett (“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”) competed with her, Kerry Condon (“The Banshees of Inisherin”), Hong Chau (“The Whale”) and Stephanie Xu, her colleague in the film “Everything Everywhere All at Once”, which played the role of the daughter of the main character.

After the ceremony, a flurry of criticism fell upon the film academy, as many predicted the victory of African-American actress Angela Bassett for the role of the Queen of Wakanda. In the film, she played a strong woman who, even after losing her son, could support her country and her people in difficult times.

The victory of Lee Curtis is justified by two factors at once.

People overlooked Jamie Lee Curtis in previous award seasons. Jamie Lee Curtis began actively acting in films back in the 1970s and was a favorite of viewers and critics, but she wasn’t even nominated for an Oscar. So, Jamie Lee Curtis could receive an award for “Everything Everywhere All at Once” based on merit in the US cinema, as a tribute to her experience and talent, which had gone unnoticed for so long.

Secondly, the image of Jamie Lee Curtis in the film is really very different from the more familiar roles of the actress. We are talking about both the appearance and the scale of the role. At 64, the actress herself performed her own stunts in action scenes and, like Michelle Yeoh, skillfully changed images during the jumps between parallel universes during the film’s plot. However, it would be incorrect to deny the ambiguity of the film academy’s decision. Many viewers and critics have the impression that it gave the award to the actress “for long service”, which does not correspond to the principle of the award. After all, there are special nominations in the film academy right for such cases.

4. “Best Editing”: an undisputed technical victory

Shot from the film "Everything is everywhere and at once" — Кадр из фильма «Всё везде и сразу»

One of the main storylines of the film is the constant movement of characters between parallel universes. Each of these universes is special, with its own color and lighting solutions and scenery. The combination of these different universes and the creation of a coherent story from the most dissimilar expositions is the merit of skillful editing. The film is called “a triumph of surrealism and abstraction”: graphic inserts and sharp jumps create the illusion of immersion in a near-comic story, and the constantly changing visual range does not let you get bored behind static scenes. Editing enhances the impact of the story on the audience, as the effects inside the film no longer work at the expense of camera work or playwrights. Intra-frame movement, breaking the boundaries of the screen – all this made the installation of “Everything Everywhere All at Once” bright and memorable.

All the above together allowed the film to pick up the last three nominations – “Best Film”, “Best Director” and “Best Original Screenplay”. “Everything Everywhere All at Once” became an example of a commercially successful picture that conquered the film academy. An absolute win for a film of this nature clearly broadens the horizon of opportunity for future Oscar-winning filmmakers. And also, it clearly points to the shift towards new bold cinema that is happening in the film academy and generally in the world.

Ирина Белоусенко

“The Shining” by Kubrick
How the filming of the movie drove the actress mad

Reading time 3 minutes

«Сияние» directed by American filmmaker Stanley Kubrick, was released in May 1980. It is a horror film based on the book by Stephen King of the same name. The wife of the film’s main character, a housewife named Wendy, was played by Shelley Duvall, a successful and in-demand American actress at the time of filming. Prior to “The Shining,” Duvall had worked with renowned directors such as Robert Altman and Woody Allen. However, due to her work with Stanley Kubrick, the actress almost lost her sanity, which greatly affected her subsequent career.

Шелли Дюваль в эпизоде с бейсбольной битой в фильме «Сияние» — Shelley Duvall in the baseball bat scene in The Shining

In cinema circles, Stanley Kubrick had a reputation as a neurotic perfectionist. “The Shining” even made it into the Guinness Book of World Records as the project with the most retakes of a single scene – there were 148. Shelley Duvall could not escape the director’s strict demands. The scene in which Wendy confronts her deranged husband with a baseball bat was shot only 127 times. Due to several hours of continuous holding of the bat and crying, the actress’s hands were torn and bloodied, her voice hoarse, and her eyes swollen from tears. On that day of filming, Duvall left the set completely exhausted and dehydrated. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the actress revealed that to maintain the constant heightened emotional state required by her role, she listened to sad music and recalled sad moments from her life. This helped Duvall cry more, which was necessary for the script. “But after a while your body rebels. It says, ‘Stop doing this to me. I don’t want to cry every day.’ And sometimes just that thought made me cry,” the actress described her experience.

In the most famous scene of “The Shining,” the main character breaks down the door with an ax to reach his wife. In order to make Duvall show real fear, Kubrick did not tell her that the door would be broken down by an ax. In the shots that made it into the final version of the film, the actress is not acting, but truly terrified by what is happening.

Шелли Дюваль в эпизоде с прорубанием двери в фильме «Сияние» — Shelley Duvall in The Shining

In the documentary film “Making of The Shining,” Vivian Kubrick shows Shelley Duvall lying on the floor surrounded by pillows. These were shots of the aftermath of a panic attack that occurred during filming. Duvall confirmed what happened in an interview with Comingsoon.net. She said that a typical day on set lasted 15-16 hours, and the lack of rest made her feel exhausted. “I got to the point where I just couldn’t take it anymore; I needed a break, but breaks cost money, and people needed to keep filming, so I had a nervous breakdown,” the actress explained.

In 2016, 36 years after the release of the movie, Shelley Duvall visited the American talk show “Doctor Phil”. During the interview, it became evident that her mental health had significantly deteriorated. The actress spoke incoherently and produced an inadequate impression. When asked about her health, she replied, “If I say I’m healthy, the first thing they’ll do is hurt me tonight.” When asked who she was talking about, Duvall replied, “Whoever was in security… or in a bank… working night shifts… Sheriff Nottingham hunted me down, and a spinning disk was implanted in my knee.” She also remembered her colleague from the movie “Popeye,” Robin Williams, who passed away in 2014. Duvall insisted that Williams was alive and simply “constantly changing his appearance.”

Шелли Дюваль в начале 80-х (слева); Шелли Дюваль на интервью в шоу «Доктор Фил» в 2016 году (справа) — Shelley Duvall in the early 80s (left); Shelley Duvall interviewed on Dr. Phil in 2016 (right)

In the same interview, Shelley Duvall stated that it was the most challenging role she has ever played, and the shooting process left a strong impression on her life. After the interview aired, “The Actors Fund,” a charitable organization concerned about the actress’s condition, offered Duvall financial assistance for treatment.

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Ирина Белоусенко

5 Foodie Films to Binge on This Weekend
A selection of films which inspire your inner chef

Reading time 5 minutes

Going beyond life-skills, cooking could be perceived as a source of pleasure and well-being. However, it can be complicated to master such a craft. We’ve put together a selection of movies for those who are still Googling how to cook pasta, but are desperate to develop their culinary skills.

1. Julie and Julia: Cooking Happiness by Recipe (2009)

Frame from the film "Julie and Julia: Cooking Happiness by Recipe" — Frame from the film “Julie and Julia: Cooking Happiness by Recipe”

The film revolves around an aspiring writer, Julie Powell, who works as a call center operator, and Julia Child, author of the cult book Mastering the Art of French Cooking. At the same time, the viewer can watch how the career of Mrs. Child herself begins in the 1940s and 1950s. It becomes obvious that the stories of the two women are similar not only in their love of cooking, but also in their attitude to difficulties and even to their own marriage.

2. Spices and Passions (2014)

Frame from the film "Spices and Passions" — Frame from the film “Spices and Passions”

A family of Indian immigrants, who live on wheels, decides to open a small oriental restaurant in the French province. However, the building where the restaurant is planned to be located is directly opposite the Weeping Willow restaurant, a Michelin-starred restaurant that regularly hosts the President of France himself for dinner. A cold but exciting war breaks out between the owners of the two restaurants. For guests, food and, to some extent, even for love.

3. Toast (2010)

Frame from the film "Toast" — Frame from the film “Toast”

4. Chief Adam Jones (2015)

Frame from the film "Chief Adam Jones" — Frame from the film “Chief Adam Jones”

A few years ago, Adams Jones worked as a chef in a first-rate restaurant in Paris, but drug abuse forced him to resign. Now he works in a small bar in the U.S., where his main duty is to pull oysters out of the sink. Tired of the meaninglessness of life, Adam decides to return to Europe and conquer the culinary world of London. From there he gets his 3 Michelin stars all at once.

5. Chocolat (2000)

Frame from the film "Chocolat" — Frame from the film “Chocolat”

This is an adaptation of the novel by British writer Joanne Haris. A young woman named Vianne Rocher arrives in a provincial French town. The appearance of new people in the city already excites the inhabitants, and when Vianne opens his own chocolate shop, they are completely lost in guessing what kind of strange guest has come to their city. Together with his daughter Anouk, the pastry chef is trying to establish a life in a new place, and at the same time introduce the locals to the exquisite taste of chocolate.

Ирина Белоусенко

Uncommon New Year’s Eve Movies
A collection of pictures with the spirit of the New Year and Christmas that you might have missed

Reading time 6 minutes

We have always watched the same New Year’s films every year. However, sometimes it is necessary to put DVCs of “Irony of Fate” and “Home Alone” on the shelf and find something new. Here is a list of films in the New Year’s Eve and Christmas mood, which you might not notice when scrolling through the thematic collections.

1. “Trapped in Paradise”, 1994. Director: George Gallo

A scene from the film "Trapped in Paradise" — A scene from the film “Trapped in Paradise”

Bill Firpo arrives in the provincial town of Paradise on Christmas Eve. He’s an honest restaurant manager, but the brothers whom Bill picks up from prison on Christmas Eve morning aren’t. Convicts Dave and Alvin Firpo tricks Bill into robbing a bank. In the absence of an alarm and the ever-sleeping guard doing their job the crime can be committed successfully. But a problem immediately arises: how to leave a small town with a huge amount of money, if a snowstorm is raging on the street, and the police are already seeking after robbers?

2. “Klaus”, 2019. Director: Sergio Pablos

A scene from the film "Klaus" — A scene from the film “Klaus”

To educate a lazy and spoiled son, the owner of the postal empire sends him to Smirensburg, located in the far north. Jesper is instructed to set up a postal service in the city and process at least 6,000 letters a year to prove his independence to his father and return home. However, the city does not accept the new postman very cordially, and it seems that no one has heard of sending letters there. But everything changes when Jesper meets a mysterious lone lumberjack named Klaus. Who, as it turns out, keeps a lot of old toys at home and is willing to handing them out to the bored children of Smeerensburg.

3. “The Apartment”, 1960. Director: Billy Wilder

A scene from the film "The Apartment" — A scene from the film “The Apartment”

Baxter is a humble employee of an insurance company. To speed up his career progression, he lends the keys of his apartment to colleagues and even his boss to retire with their mistresses. Baxter’s plan works until he meets Fran, his boss’s secret lover. A new feeling is born between the characters, and Christmas night puts everything in its place.

4. A Very Murray Christmas, 2015. Director: Sofia Coppola

A scene from the film "A Very Murray Christmas" — A scene from the film “A Very Murray Christmas”

Bill Murray is planning a brilliant TV show for Christmas, with celebrity guests and a packed program. But the plans are thwarted by an unexpected snowstorm which led to the absence of the eminent guests. However, in the snow-covered New York hotel where the show is scheduled and where Bill is so unsuccessfully stuck, there are a lot of random people. And Bill still manages to throw a party, just for a different audience and with new entertainment.

5. “8 Women”, 2001. Director: Francois Ozon

A scene from the film "8 Women" — A scene from the film “8 Women”

The family gathers at an estate in the French outback to celebrate Christmas. But upon arrival, the guests find the owner of the house murdered in his bedroom. 8 women, each of whom is somehow connected with a dead man, begin their investigation. At the same time, they are all under suspicion, because each had the motive to commit a brutal murder. The darkest family secrets begin to unfold in the house, and the identity of the killer becomes the main Christmas entertainment.

Ирина Белоусенко

From a black-and-white series to the Netflix’s hit
How has the image of Wednesday Addams changed over time?

Reading time 9 minutes

Wednesday premiered on Netflix on October 23, 2022. In the first week, he broke the English-language viewing hours record. Took away the championship from Stranger Things (season 4), Wednesday became the absolute leader of the platform. Many viewers and critics noted that Jenna Ortega (main role) played a key role in such a bright start. Her Wednesday Addams turned out to be a deep and atmospheric character, the personification of a mixture between canonical and modern image.

But what is this “canonical image”? And how much has it changed since the first appearance of the Gothic Addams family? Let’s figure it out.

First appearance

Fragment of the original comic by Charles Addams

The Addams are a fictional family conceived and drawn in 1938 by American artist Charles Addams for The New Yorker magazine, which is still popular to this day. Addams’s idea was to portray a “perfect” American family through the lens of satire and black humor, which resonated with the magazine’s readers. Wednesday, who is the daughter of Morticia and Gomez Addams, is obsessed with causing pain to others and surprisingly serious for her age.

In the original version of Charles Addams, Wednesday has not acquire her pigtails for a modern audience, and her famous school dress is completely pink. However, such an atypically “bright” image for a member of the Addams family began to crumble very quickly. The catalyst was the emergence of a television series.

First film adaptation: “The Addams Family”

Wednesday in the series "The Addams Family" 60s — Wednesday in the series “The Addams Family” 60s

The comic about Addams family was first adapted for television in 1964, then began airing regularly on ABC. Here Wednesday already acquired characteristic and recognizable features – two pigtails in the middle, a strict black school dress, and a heavy look from underneath. We heard the name “Wednesday” for the first time – Charles Addams picked up the name of his little heroine only when he received an offer to make a family TV show. As it turned out, the name was derived from an old English nursery rhyme “Monday’s Child”:

Monday’s child is fair of face

Tuesday’s child is full of grace

Wednesday’s child is full of woe

Thursday’s child has far to go

Friday’s child is loving and giving

Saturday’s child works hard for his living

And the child that is born on the Sabbath day

Is bonny and blithe, and good and gay.

Since grief and misfortune are exactly what pleases the artsy American family, it was decided to name the girl Wednesday.

Cultural Phenomenon: The 1991 Addams Family Movie

The film “The Addams Family”, which released in 1991, gave the world the most famous image of Wednesday Addams performed by Christina Ricci. It’s an image about the girl look from a strange family, making two black pigtails and a black school dress with a high white collar one of the most popular Halloween costumes of the 90s. In the New Yorker comic and the 1960s sitcom, although Tuesday dressed in dark colors and had strange and characteristic Addams hobbies, she was essentially an adorable child, the standard image of a little girl in a family television series. Whereas 1991’s Wednesday is a heroine with a high intellect followed by a serious and sometimes stern demeanor, and all lines are delivered in a monotonous voice with a deadpan expression on her face. In the film, the character of Wednesday was revealed the most, she ceased to be “one of the two children” of the Addams couple and became an independent and bright character – with a memorable gloominess and cruelty.

Christina Ricci’s performance did not change much but finalized the canonical image of Wednesday Addams. Subsequently, the authors of all subsequent adaptations began to rely on it. This is because Wednesday of 1991 has become not just a minor character, but the main character in the eyes of the audience. Her feminist statements and honesty added depth to the heroine, and the external image became more in line with modern cinema than the version of the girl from the 60s.

Conquest of the world of animation

In 2019, the feature-length cartoon The Addams Family was released on the big screens. The animation exaggerated the image of Wednesday, adding to her pale, the ability to move silently (thus frightening unprepared characters), and the lack of a smile throughout the cartoon. Wednesday was voiced by American actress Chloe Grace Moretz, who did not look like her heroine in appearance, but talentedly conveyed the girl’s lack of emotions and gloominess verbally.

Wednesday from the animated film is naturally based on the image that the audience loves, embodied by Christina Ricci, so there were no significant changes in it.

The hit of autumn-winter 2022: A series on Netflix

The final stage of character development to date is Wednesday Addams, played by Jenna Ortega, in the Netflix series. What immediately catches your eye is the appearance of bangs on the heroine. In an interview, Jenna admitted that she and the director of the project, Tim Burton, wanted to add something new to the famous image that could distinguish it from previous versions. The outfits for Wednesday have also changed. The classic school uniform was replaced by a black zip-hoodie, striped long sleeves, and rough black platform boots. But most of all, the attention of the audience was attracted by the dress that Wednesday wears to the school prom – yes, everything is just as frilly but elegant and not typical of previous generations of Wednesday.

Dress Wednesday in one of the episodes of the series

In addition, the series also changes the age of the heroine. In the Netflix hit, she becomes a teenager, which, although done rather develop the plot, nevertheless gives a look at the heroine from a new, previously unknown side.

One thing is for sure – a heavy look and love for black remain the eternal companions of the heroine. For more than 80 years, Wednesday has changed significantly on the outside, but inside she always remains a gloomy and mysterious girl, as Charles Addams intended.

Ирина Белоусенко

The History of The “Lofi Girl”
How a continuous cult stream appeared on YouTube with an “eternal” student

Reading time 8 minutes

On March 18, 2015 a Paris student Dmitry created a YouTube channel called “Chilled Cow”. About two years later, on February 25, 2017 the channel launched its first live broadcast with music in the Lo-fi genre, the background being an excerpt from the anime “Whisper of the Heart” , in which the main character is studying. The channel was starting to gain popularity and with it came increasing copyright claims due to the use of an animated clip by Studio Ghibli. In 2018 the channel was blocked and with that, the stream stopped.

Fragment from the anime "Whisper of the Heart" used in the broadcast — Fragment from the anime “Whisper of the Heart” used in the broadcast

It seems to be a short history of an unremarkable channel. The live broadcast option appeared on YouTube in 2011 and by 2017 there were several dozen channels broadcasting music of different genres. The Chilled Cow is likely to be just one example of a media failure.

However, the key word here is indeed “seems”. Now the channel has more than 11 million subscribers and 1.3 billion views: its name is heard by almost all pupils and students. Let’s remember together how “Chilled Cow” turned into a cultural phenomenon called “Lofi Girl” and where the girl with endless homework came from.

In 2018, the channel was blocked for copyright infringement. Not wanting to give up the idea of a musical line, channel creator Dmitry decided to create his own heroine in a similar classic anime style and began to look for an artist. In September 2018, Dmitry’s announcement to the Emil Kohl School of Animation was responded to by Colombian artist Juan Pablo Machado. He was in his senior year when he received an offer to draw a new character for a musical genre.

Among Machado’s many sketches, one is particularly notable. This is how Jade came about (yes, lo-fi student with a name). She sat at her desk, flipping through the pages of her notebook and occasionally glancing out the window as soft lo-fi music played in the background. Notably, the Jade room window overlooks the historic center of Lyon, the city in France where Juan Machado spent five years studying the art of animation. A small nod to Alma Mater, thanks in large part to the famous student appearing online. And every few hours, the broadcast changes the time of day, which creates a sense of immersion for channel viewers. Especially those who live in the European time zone.

Machado himself has more than once admitted that he did not expect the 80-second animated film to be so successful. In early 2020, he was even contacted by a representative of a museum in Seoul who wanted to make the illustration part of a permanent exhibition.

Not only the Korean museum recognizes the cultural significance of “Lofi Girl”. From a background character for music programs, Jade has become a virtual icon of the digital space. Several dozen channels with a similar musical orientation began to feature their own characters, and fans of the original heroine kept coming up with drawings with a rethink of Jade’s image. Thereby, for instance, in 2020 artists from all over the world decided to paint the eternal student in the reality of their country.

"Lofi Girl" from Brazil / credits: @LeticiaEfing — “Lofi Girl” from Brazil / credits: @LeticiaEfing

"Lofi Girl" from Greece / credits: @arjunks — “Lofi Girl” from Greece / credits: @arjunks

References to “Lofi Girl” can even be found in popular culture. In the Steven Universe animated series: Future, one of the heroines – Connie – is depicted sitting in the identical “Lofi Girl” pose. And the game’s official YouTube channel World of Warcraft published a Jade-themed parody as part of a campaign promoting the Shadowlands add-on.

The heroine of the cartoon "Steven Universe" - above, Jade - below — The heroine of the cartoon “Steven Universe” – above, Jade – below

Jade has become a loyal companion and role model for those who are drawn to the flow while working or studying. She is concentrated, undistracted and constantly immersed in her studies. The stream goes on around the clock and is uninterrupted, so that anyone can connect to the “study session” with a student who never looks up from her notes. Many users admitted that the virtual girl helped them a lot to survive lonely evenings spent studying textbooks and even motivated them to spend more time on homework.

On February 22, 2020, an unexpected and shocking event happened to Lofi Girl fans: YouTube moderators blocked the channel with the broadcast for “violating the rules of the service.” And although after a couple of hours the platform apologized and restored the channel, the broadcast had to be restarted. The abrupt end of the stream was recorded, creating the longest video in YouTube history at 13,165 hours, or 548 days of non-stop streaming. Users calculated that during all this time of continuous study, Jade would have already managed to get several higher educations and learn seven of the most difficult languages of the world (on average, it takes 1750 hours to reach the level of fluent communication).

Many users have grown and learned with the anime girl, the audience has changed with each other, and Jade has always remained the same, opening up more and more new notes. Maybe one day she’ll be able to relax, like all those chilled out on her cozy lo-fi playlist.

Ирина Белоусенко