Night Watch (Nochnoi Dozor) Movie Review
Friday, February 24, 2006
Last week, I had the pleasure of attending a Fox Searchlight screening of “Night Watch” on the 20th Century studio lot here in Los Angeles.The film, directed by Timur Bekmambetov from a screenplay by Bekmambetov and Sergei Lukyanenko, is a stylish sci fi/horror/fantasy film that has reshaped the image of Russian cinema. Bekmambetov, who worked closely with Lukyanenko to adapt the novel to the screen, is considered by many to be the Tarantino of Russian filmmaking. His cutting edge visual style recalls the best of Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Tony Scott, and David Fincher, among others, and is distinguished by its combination of state-of-the-art visual effects, adrenaline-driven action, and white-knuckle terror.
The film, originally released in Russia in July 2004, is the highest grossing film in Russian history and has enjoyed significant international acclaim.
“Night Watch” is the first installment of an epic trilogy based on the best-selling Russian sci-fi novels of Sergei Lukyanenko which also include “Day Watch” and “Dusk Watch.” The otherworldly tale of ancient magic unleashed in modern times has resonated strongly with young Russian readers, sci-fi buffs, and internet fans who have turned the novels into cult classics. The story is an allegorical exploration of the fragile balance between good and evil in the world today. The film’s plot centers around the supernatural struggle to uphold a 1000-year-old truce between the forces of Light and Darkness involving clandestine battles on the streets and subways of modern Moscow.
It focuses specifically on one man’s moral breakdown while these forces fight for his soul. The opposing members of Night Watch and Day Watch represent two different, competing social philosophies – a Manichean struggle between equally potent forces of good and evil. For centuries, the undercover members of the Night Watch have policed the world’s Dark Ones – the vampires, witches, shape-shifters and sorcerers – while the Dark Ones have a Day Watch that keeps a watchful eye on the forces of Light. The fate of humanity depends on maintaining this delicate balance, but that perilous equilibrium is about to be threatened by the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy of a “Great One” who will come to put an end once and for all to the apocalyptic battle between Light and Dark.
The film’s opening prologue is set in 1342 A.D. when, after centuries of war, the Warriors of the Light and the Warriors of the Dark forge a tenuous truce whereby humans with supernatural powers, known as “Others,” will patrol the opposite side to maintain the balance of power. The complex narrative shifts next to1992 when Anton Gorodensky (played by Konstantin Khabensky) is caught up in a Night Watch sting involving a witch whose services he has procured to produce a curse that will magically abort his adulterous wife’s unborn child. In the process, he discovers that he is an “Other” with the ability to see into the future. Then the story flash forwards to 2004 when Anton is now a vampire and a leading member of Night Watch who patrols Moscow fighting those who threaten to disrupt the balance between Dark and Light.
After he is sent to rescue a young boy, Yegor (Dima Martynov), from other vampires, he begins to suspect that Yegor is his long-lost son, and he is haunted by his past actions. Inevitably, Anton’s mission entangles him in the fulfillment of the prophecy. The film takes great pains to impress upon its audience that the choice between Dark and Light is a matter of free choice, perhaps a less than subtle reminder that the Evil Empire has collapsed, and Russian culture is actively engaged in the process of reinventing itself.
“Night Watch” has an impressive cast drawn from some of Russia’s best, most highly trained actors. Besides Khabensky, the main cast includes Vladimir Menshov, a widely respected theater and film actor and filmmaker, who plays Boris Geser, the ruthless head of the Moscow Night Watch; Maria Poroshina as Svetlana, the legendary Virgin who brings misfortune wherever she goes; Galina Tunina as Olga, a shape-shifting member of the Night Watch who helps Anton on his quest; and Victor Verzhbitsky as Zavulon, the head of Day Watch. The supporting cast includes Galina Tunina as the Sorceress Olga; Maria Poroshina as the mysteriously cursed Svetlana; Alexei Chadov as Kostya, the young vampire; Valery Zolotukhin as Kostya’s father; Zhanna Friske as the Day Watch’s Alyssa; Ilia Lagutenko as Andrei, the vampire; and Rimma Markova as Daria, the witch.
Bekmambetov cast actors whose appearance, mannerisms, and physicality clearly reflect the opposing sides of the Good and Evil. In an interview, he states, “I felt that there are actors who look like actors and there are actors who just look like people. We cast the actors who look like actors as the Dark Ones because they are very cool, very original, interesting and proud. But those actors who look like regular people, they were cast as the Light Ones, the members of the Night Watch.” Bekmembatov also chose actors who could handle the film’s intense action while also exploring their characters’ emotional and psychological worlds which sets “Night Watch” apart from other modern horror fantasies: “In American fantasy movies the characters aren’t usually so deep, but here we have access to Russian actors who have a very strong schooling in Stanislavski. So, because of that, we could bring to the fantasy genre very deep characters and very complicated relationships and a lot of complexity of story through the performances.” Indeed, the actors create convincing characters that resonate vividly with an audience and render the complex narrative and fantastical premise believable.
What makes Bekmambetov’s directing style distinct is his highly visual approach to filmmaking and his ability to delve deeply into characters. The Kazakhstan-born director has a distinct sense of story and an innovative visual style that draws on his many years of experience directing commercials and music videos. In “Night Watch,” he has constructed a film that combines state-of-the-art special effects with a personal understanding of the Russian culture and spirit.
His filmmaking approach affects an audience on the most visceral level, allowing them to experience intimately the dark, chaotic, and emotional series of events that embroil the film’s characters. Combining the best of Russian and American films, Bekmambetov has succeeded in making a fantasy horror film that appeals to a Russian audience while reflecting the influence of his favorite American directors such as James Cameron, Ridley Scott, Roger Corman, the Wachowski brothers, and Quentin Tarantino. “Night Watch” is filled with exhilarating images (Yegor’s translucent head), adrenaline-charged chases, explosions, and stunts (a speeding truck somersaulting unharmed over a pedestrian), and CGI-enhanced special effects (such as the film’s violent rooftop finale involving a digital cast of hundreds that resembles a cosmic version of a street fighter videogame), along with a unique blend of clever humor, strong philosophy, and human insight.
Bekmambetov combines intense realism and a pervasive atmosphere of misery with inventive special effects that are on par with some of the best Hollywood films, although with a distinctly Russian tone. Abandoning the slow, leisurely pace that characterized decades of state-sponsored Soviet filmmaking, he has introduced fast-paced action, lightning-quick editing, and hyper-kinetic cinematography to Russian films.
His visual style combines the energy of music videos with the clarity of commercials and delivers a quick moving story full of dramatic action that is at once disturbing, tumultuous, abrasive, unusually emotional, and deliberately designed to appeal to a young audience. The action moves so quickly, the editing is so jarring, the rhythm so choppy, and the imagery so cluttered that it’s a genuine challenge keeping up with the complex twists and turns of the plot. (Nothing, however, that a little blood-and-vodka cocktail and an episode of “Buffy and the Vampire” won’t cure.) The sound design is impressive -- both raucous and unnerving -- from the incessant noise to the torrential music to the buzzing bugs (one of the director’s personal phobias).
In close collaboration with Director of Photography Sergei Trofimov and Art Directors Valery Victorov and Mukhtar Mirzakeyev, Bekmambetov delivers a vibrant, youthful image of Moscow using many recognizable landmarks.
While he depicts Russian culture as very colorful, expressive, and dramatic, he also shows us its dark, shabby side with squalid living conditions, power failures, bad weather, and disorderly public drunks. Bekmambetov shot much of the film on the streets of contemporary Moscow and succeeds in capturing the raw, gritty reality which, combined with the story’s cynicism and ironic wit, is a metaphor for 21st century society that simmers just below the surface of this supernatural thriller.
Indeed, every element in the film – from the sets to the costume to the make-up – feels real within a surreal context. Many of the locations frighten on a subliminal level and evoke the most primal fear and anxiety -- from the high rooftops of suburban housing projects full of spider-like antennas; to the cold, unsettling vibes of the Metro subway where Anton first encounters Svetlana, the funnel creator; to the abandoned barbershop that is a vampire’s lair where one of the film’s most violent confrontations takes place; to The Gloom, the eerie netherworld where The Others meet and fight, which is filled with the sight and sound of mosquitoes.
“Night Watch” is an astonishing film at the forefront of a new wave of revitalized, post-Soviet Russian cinema. Despite its distinctly sharp Slavic flavor, it is remarkably different from Soviet films. While it is steeped in classic horror and sci-fi conventions from both American and international films (e.g. “Matrix,” Star Wars,” “Underworld,” “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, “Constantine”), it stands on its own and represents a unique and original contribution to a new Russian culture. Bekmambetov uses the language of American films, but reinvents it in a distinctly Russian way with a great sense of style and character.
Although the convoluted plot, hyper-kinetic visuals, and ritual mumbo jumbo of its alternative universe sometimes grate on your nerves, “Night Watch” nevertheless offers an exciting new image for Russian films. And Bekmambetov sets things up nicely too for the next installment of the occult thriller trilogy, “Day Watch,” to be released later this year which is sure to attract lots of fans worldwide.
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posted by Evil @ 5:29 AM,
