It has a pleasant opening theme song hope for the bestexpect the worst. Our tongueincheek film and furniture pick of a film set in russia is the twelve chairs mel brooks, 1970 which takes the viewer on a comical treasure hunt for family jewels across 1920s soviet union. The film was one of at least 18 film adaptations of the russian 1928 novel the twelve chairs by ilf and petrov. Highdefinition digital projection gambolling about the balkans is the theme of mel brooks second feature, with comic moody and personable langella chasing the one chair out of a set which is stuffed with prerussian revolutionary booty.
The twelve chairs is set in 1927, in the still prestalinist soviet union. A scientists time travel machine ends up teleporting his tenement administrator into 16th century russia and bringing ivan the terrible into the present. The tag line suggests this movie was made because the soviet union couldnt stand the unauthentic version. Watch the twelve chairs full movie in hd visit treasure hunt. The twelve chairs 1970 movie trailer starring frank.
This film is not currently playing on mubi but 30 other great films are. More faithful to the original text and its deeply resonant humor, this new translation of the twelve chairs brings ilf and petrovs russian classic fully to life. Mel brooks made a version titled the twelve chairs 1970. Movies like twelve chairs if you like twelve chairs you are looking for humorous, realistic and captivating movies about with treasure hunt, treasure, partners, crimes, con artists, jewelry and furniture themes of adventure, comedy and crime genre shot in soviet union. The very amusing the twelve chairs is probably mel brooks least demented comedy. A wild and hilarious chase for a fortune in jewels. Gutierrez alea, with his first featurelength fiction film, the twelve chairs 1962. A wild and hilarious chase for a fortune in jewels a treasure hunt. In 2015, a rather tactful remake of the film was done by director renat davletyarov, but, of. The novel has been adapted to other media, primarily film. His film followed the novel more closely, but with a sanitized happier ending. The twelve chairs is a classic satirical novel by the odessan soviet authors ilf and petrov, published. They run into dom deluise, playing a zero mostelinthe producers role, and brooks himself as a loony lackey.
After many years, ive now seen this tepid film twice. Onetime aristocrat vorobyaninov, now reduced to a humdrum clerical job, discovers that his familys fortune still exists. The first film based on the twelve chairs was shot in poland and. In 1920s soviet russia, a fallen aristocrat, a priest and a con artist search for a treasure of jewels hidden inside one of twelve dining chairs, lost during the revolution. Its main character ostap bender reappears in the books sequel the golden calf, in spite. Brooks is in complete control of the many film techniques visual and dramatiche employs.
Enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing the twelve chairs near you. The novels iconic hero, ostap bender, an unemployed con artist living by his wits, joins forces with ippolit matveyevich vorobyaninov, a former nobleman who. To say that the twelve chairs is largely forgotten today implies it was ever remembered. The twelve chairs is a classic satirical novel by the odessan soviet authors ilya ilf and yevgeni. The twelve chairs 1970 g 10281970 us comedy 1h 34m user score. In this farce, a civil servant discovers that he is heir to a vast fortune, which is hidden in one of a set of twelve chairs.
One of several film versions of the 1928 russian novel the twelve chairs one of the betterknown adaptations was the 1945 fred allen vehicle its in the bag, mel brooks movie is set in the years following the bolshevik revolution. The twelve chairs 1970 full movie download full hd youtube. Its plot follows characters attempting to obtain jewelry hidden in a chair. You go in expecting to laugh a lot, because youve seen the producers.
Their travels convey both the geographical and cultural landscape, as the main characters encounter all manner of interesting people on their journey. This film is only available for sale on dvd and for research rentals. An aging exnobleman of the czarist regime has finally adjusted to life under the commisars in russia. Milne, zoshchenko and the ilfpetrov partnership, 153. Richardson with an introduction by maurice friedberg previously translated by elizabeth hill and doris mudie as diamonds to sit on 1930. The twelve chairs is a comedy film directed by mel brooks, starring frank langella, dom deluise and ron moody. Hence, during the liberal years of 19537 the soviet government made available, as a concession to its humourstarved subjects, new editions of the old works of soviet humorists, including 200,000 copies of ilf and petrovs the twelve chairs and the little golden calf. The twelve chairs is the sort of movie that improves upon reflection. Oct 19, 2002 hence, during the liberal years of 19537 the soviet government made available, as a concession to its humourstarved subjects, new editions of the old works of soviet humorists, including 200,000 copies of ilf and petrovs the twelve chairs and the little golden calf. When her country is taken over by socialist revolutionaries, a wealthy woman cant bear to give up all of her wealth and possessions to the new government, so she hides all of her treasures in the 12 chairs of a diningroom set. The twelve chairs cast and crew cast photos and info fandango. Many film versions of the twelve chairs have been made, including mel brooks 1970 version with frank langella and dom deluise, nicolas gessner and luciano lucignanis 1969.
Years after the russian revolution in 1917, the former aristocrat ippolit matveevich vorobyaninov is informed by his terminal motherinlaw that she has hidden her jewels in a the upholstery of chair from a set of twelve chairs. The novels iconic hero, ostap bender, an unemployed con artist living by his wits, joins forces with ippolit matveyevich vorobyaninov, a former nobleman who has returned to his. Twelve chairs is a residential interior design studio located on tremont street in bostons historic south end neighborhood. Unfortunately, the chairs have been scattered to locations unknown. The twelve chairs is the cuban version of an ofttold russian story, also filmed by mel brooks in 1970. Both he and the local priest find that the family jewels were hidden in a chair. Winner, 2012 northern california book award for fiction in translation more faithful to the original text and its deeply resonant humor, this new translation of the twelve chairs brings ilf and petrovs russian classic fully to life. I grew up watching brooks and eagerly attended blazing saddles and young frankenstein in junior high school, enjoyed his many television appearances during that time to promote his films, suffered through the diminishing returns of silent movie and high anxiety in high school, listened with relish to his 2000 year old man records in. An aging exnobleman of the czarist regime has finally adjusted to life under the. Twelve chairs opens at the regency the new york times. A film director and his strange friends struggle to produce the first major silent feature film in forty years. All of the characters go in search of the chairs in this study of human greed and avarice.
Also sign me up for fanmail to get updates on all things movies. Brooks is in complete control of the many film techniquesvisual and dramatiche employs. Orson welles as the pirate long john silver, with kim burfield and michel garland, in the 1972 film version of treasure island. But in 1970, brooks stood at a crossroads between being a rising star and becoming a national treasure1970 was the year of the twelve chairs. Frank langella of dracula fame was only 32 when this comedy was made. Ippolit vorobyaninov, a onetime nobleman turned lowly bureaucrat, teams up with con man ostap bender in search of a trove of priceless jewels spirited away during the russian revolutionin one of twelve identical dining room chairs. Film society of lincoln center is collaborating with jstor to digitize. Its main character ostap bender reappears in the books sequel the golden calf, in spite of his apparent death in chairs. The twelve chairs is a 1970 american comedy film directed by mel brooks and starring frank. The twelve chairs used to be my favorite mel brooks film.
To optimize your experience with your screen reading software, please use our website, which has the same tickets as our fandango. In the soviet union in 1927, ippolit matveyevich vorobyaninov, an. Mel brooks our tongueincheek film and furniture pick of a film set in russia is the twelve chairs mel brooks, 1970 which takes the viewer on a comical treasure hunt for family jewels across 1920s soviet union. The twelve chairs is not a characteristic film of mel brooks but it is outrageously hilarious. The latest known translation of the novel was done by john richardson and. You may want to ask in ask the tropers about whether its safe to recreate.
Soviet cinema of the 1930s1980s included only 12 films 4 % made by female directors, while the. With mel brooks, ron moody, frank langella, dom deluise. Twelve chairs film production films to change your mind. Although this is a much different film than brooks other films, having been based on an old russian novel instead of being a spoof of another film. With the assistance of a blackmailing conman frank langella, he embarks on a quest to locate the missing jewels, encountering an unexpected rival in the form of a priest dom deluise who heard about the hidden treasure during a confession. It may not be rented for a noncommercial public performance screening. Welles love of makeup and fake noses is apparent in his performance as a traveling theatre company manager in the thirteen chairs a. The cuban masterworks collection the new york times. The twelve chairs 28th october 1970 cinema 94 mins 1. The twelve chairs is 1976 four episode musical television film directed by mark zakharov based on the 1928. May 6, 2015, marks the centenary of orson welles, the american actor, director, writer and producer whose bestknown film, citizen kane, is regarded by many as the best ever made. The twelve chairs is a curious choice for mel brooks second directorial feature film.
And you do laugh a lot to the point, perhaps, that you miss what this new brooks film is about. The twelve chairs could you be sitting on a fortune. Back to the future, a 1973 comedy by leonid gaidai. Communism had won the day by the then, but its success in establishing itself still showed huge gaps and it is through these that ilf and petrov gleefully leap in this broad comedy.
The twelve chairs is a part of the russian literary heritage of the first half of the 20th. Its main character, ostap bender, reappears in the books sequel, the little golden calf. Dec 19, 2008 the twelve chairs is a comedy film directed by mel brooks, starring frank langella, dom deluise and ron moody. Jul 02, 20 the twelve chairs used to be my favorite mel brooks film. The twelve chairs, which opened yesterday at the regency theater, is the officially approved soviet film version of the classic ilf and petrov comic novel about greed, avarice and. I wasnt crazy about it the first time and a second viewing only confirmed how forgettable it is. Ilya ilf, pseudonym of iehielleyb ilya arnoldovich faynzilberg was a popular soviet journalist and writer of jewish origin who usually worked in collaboration with yevgeni petrov during the 1920s and 1930s. Fans looking for the same offthewall sensibility that pervades blazing saddles and young frankenstein might be a little disappointed, although there certainly are moments that should please them such as when dom deluise opens his window after pulling into a siberian train station to confront a mountain of snow. The twelve chairs is a 1970 american comedy film directed by mel brooks and starring frank langella, ron moody, and dom deluise. Produced by johns hopkins university press in collaboration with the sheridan libraries. Feb 20, 2007 the three leading cuban directors are represented.
The twelve chairs ru 1928 is a classic satirical novel by the soviet authors ilf and petrov. What benefits a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul. With enrique santisteban, reynaldo miravalles, rene sanchez, pilin vallejo. The twelve chairs, a 1971 film by leonid gaidai based on the famous novel of the same name by ilf and petrov.
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