At the closing of the MIFF, a minute of silence was announced, but not everyone wanted to be silent

Almost all festival awards left Russia

If the opening of the Moscow Film Festival was held under the hot sun, then at the closing the stars walked in the cool autumn twilight. The festival itself left conflicting feelings for many, and its final ceremony was also not without oddities.

Perhaps the most dissatisfied at this festival were the gossip chroniclers. They were practically left out of work, curtailing to a minimum everything connected with walking a heavy suite and splashing champagne. No parties, no boat trips, no fashion shows, no banquets with a Russian character. Perhaps we can say that all this is sacrificed to cinema. More or less.

The organizers of the festival do not miss the opportunity to announce once again about forty-nine films from twenty-five countries, and to remind about not the most friendly citizenship of an impressive part of the works. Formally, the flags are still really visiting us, but in the main competition, with the exception of one French film, exotic cinema prevailed.

In the decisions of the jury of various festival programs, multiculturalism also won. The Iranian film “Breeze” was named the best short film. Director Juboraj Shamim from Bangladesh received a special prize for his feature debut ‘Instinct’. Sinisa Cvetic from Serbia was recognized as the best director for the family drama Beheading.

The award for Best Actor was given to Costel Kashkaval, who played in the Romanian film The Voice Crying in the Wilderness a priest who becomes a symbol of resistance in a communist country. In the women’s nomination, Peg Akhangarani won for her performance in the film “Without prior arrangement.” This film about the return of an Iranian woman to her native city after a long life in Germany became the best film of the festival, and director Bahruz Shoaibi received the Golden George from the hands of the chairman of the jury, Yevgeny Mironov.

Among the Russians who won awards at the closing ceremony were directors Sergei Debizhev for the documentary “The Holy Archipelago” and Pyotr Todorovsky for the film “Healthy Man”, named the best in the Russian Premieres competition.

Thus, in the results of the festival, a clear eastern course has been outlined. It must be admitted that Iranian cinema often wins at various festivals, and there is a demand for exotic in Europe and America. Such films, of course, are good in contrast to international blocksters, but similar films did not make it to the MIFF this year.

The secular part of the ceremony can hardly be called a burlesque of passions, but of course there were various reasons to wash the bones of the stars. Dyuzhev without a wife (there are rumors that there have been disagreements in the family), Regina Todorenko after giving birth (she got into shape almost immediately), finally two ladies unknown to anyone with a poster “Glory to great Russia, I am proud of my country and president.” What this performance was timed to remains unclear. Go take a look at this modern art.

Evgeny Mironov’s appearance on the stage was also memorable. As chairman of the jury, he presented the main prize for the best film and preceded this procedure with memories of the recently deceased Mikhail Gorbachev. The actor offered to honor the memory of the first president of the USSR in silence and called on the audience to get up from their seats. Not everyone got up, but somewhere on the balcony there was a cry: “I won’t stand for Gorbachev!” At this moment, the foreign participants of the ceremony had another reason to admire these unpredictable Russians. In which everything, if not on the verge of a foul, then certainly on the verge of a nervous breakdown.