Travesty of the cult image of Lenin in post-Soviet cinematography on the materials of the films “Comedy of the Strict Regime” and “Village of Khlyupovo Separates from the Union”

Abstract

This article is written within the framework of the topic “The Image of Lenin in Art Cinematography of Russia of the XX – XXI centuries”. The author explores the period at the turn of eras, from collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 until the appearance of a new state of the Russian Federation on the world map. In the focus of attention are two films made in 1992, which subject to travesty the cult image of Lenin created by the founders of artistic Leniniana on stage and screen. Since the films were made at the turn of historical eras, there are attributes of a new artistic way of thinking – postmodernism, which are also analyzed in the article. The goal of this work lies in proving on the materials of films “Comedy of the Strict Regime” and “Village of Khlyupovo Separates from the Union” that the stylistic method of travesty is applied by cinematographers of post-Soviet period for debunking and ridiculing the cult image of Lenin created by the founders of secular Leniniana. The novelty of research is defined by the fact that these films have not been previously viewed from such perceptive. The article may serve as the foundation for future research on post-Soviet Leniniana. The author comes to the conclusion that it is not the persona of V. I. Ulyanov-Lenin to be debunked and ridiculed, but the image created by the masters of Soviet Leniniana. In ideological aspect, both films fall into the category of “iconoclastic”; the authors refer to the core problem of postmodernism – liberation of a person from totalitarian system, and display it in the ironic way.