"I go to fight some old" - a feature film by Leonid Bykov shot on memoirs of Soviet pilots considered the best Soviet film about the Great Patriotic War
The idea of this film came up with Leonid Bykov ago. During the war he dreamed of becoming a pilot, but because of the small stature he was not taken to flight school. But the love of the people of this heroic profession continued to live there permanently. Once in the early '70s Bulls moved from Leningrad to Kiev, he decided his first film at the studio there the lift was about military pilots
In collaboration with the two writers - Eugene and Alexander Onopriyenko Satskaya - he wrote the script, based on the true events of the Great Patriotic War. In particular, a person squadron commander Guards Captain Titarenko (aka Maestro) hiding the Hero of the Soviet Union, the guy with the Arbat Vitaliy Popkov. During the war he served in the legendary 5th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment under the command of Vasily Stalin and his squadron he was nicknamed "singing", because it had its own choir, and two aircraft were given the front orchestra Utesov and one sported the words funny boys. By the way, the regiment Vasily Stalin came to Berlin and brought down the record number of enemy aircraft - 744, had in its ranks the 27 Heroes of the Soviet Union (14 of them were directly under the Maestro, and most Popkov after the war in Moscow installed as the bust twice Hero) < br />
When Bykov wrote the script, he tried not to deviate too much from the actual event, but something is still speculation and changed. For example, he invented a new character - grasshoppers. In fact, low turns over the airfield before the girls were manufactured by none other than himself, Popkov, for which the commander ordered him to forbid combat sorties a month. But such deviations from the actual events in the script was a bit, and the lion's share of what we see in the film - though
This love of the Uzbek Romeo (real name of the pilot was Marnsaev) to Russian Juliet, and their subsequent death (she died in the bombing of the dining room, and Romeo clasped his head in one battle) ...
... And the habit of baptizing mechanic before flying planes ...
... And getting Maestro prisoner to his (to prove their affiliation to the Red Army had to punch one of the guards in the face), etc. etc.
Meanwhile, when the script was written and sent "upstairs", there soon came an unexpected answer: that the material unheroic. High censors were outraged by the fact that Soviet pilots are depicted in many scenes like singing clowns. In short, a film set Bykov initially banned. But he did not despair. To prove otherwise, the Bulls took ... "run in" the script on stage. Reading them separate pieces of the script in various cities of the Soviet Union resulted from the audience so excited, that is no doubt the correctness of the created works of censors has not occurred. And then there's the script began to stand up for people who do not know firsthand about the war. In particular, November 14, 1972 at the studio Dovzhenko goal sent a letter to the chief of staff of the military unit 55127 Colonel Lezzhov. He wrote that he had read the script - it's an honest story about the war and about the people who produced it win
February 20, 1973 the film was launched during the preparatory period. And here, too, Bykov had to face a number of difficulties. For example, a lot of nerves he should statement on the role of motor-vehicle Makaritch Leningrad actor Alexei Smirnov. He was known to a wide audience primarily as a comedy actor plan, and Bykov he would become a front-line soldier. Learning of this, officials from the movie sharply opposed: "Do not be! He is stupid face! "But when the Bulls announced that refuses to shoot the film, if it is not Smirnova, when told that" the actor with a blunt face "- himself a former soldier who had returned from the war a full knight of the Order of Glory, resistance officials was broken. By the way, middle cinematic techniques gave the Bulls the same as actually wore Smirnov - Makarych
Great help in the work on the film had a Marshal, legendary pilot Alexander Pokryshkin. When asked for the Bulls to see him, to get him to release for the filming of these aircraft during the war, Marshal initially reacted cautiously to this request. Too many in those years out loop through war movies to go with the marshal believed venture Bykov remove "imperishable." He questioned him leave for a few days the script to get acquainted with the material. But a few days was not required. Overnight Pokryshkin swallowed script and ordered the filmmakers to give not one, not two, but five aircraft, four "Yak-18" and the Czechoslovak «Z-326", similar in appearance to "Messerschmitt-109." Machinery delivered to the Kiev airport "The Seagull", where they are repainted and give them front-line view of
Filming began on May 22 in the pavilion at the studio Dovzhenko scenery 'dugout KP "and" dugout battalion commander. " Then the shooting moved to nature: in late May began to shoot aerial combat "yak" with "Messers". Here remembers about this party of the shooting - operator Vital Kondratiev: "For the convenience of air shooting, I came up with a special device, which is mounted between the first and second cabins and allows you to take close-up shot during the flight. Bykov my invention has approved and immediately decided first to take to the air to test it in practice. Pilot subscribed in the sky "barrel" and "dead loop" and Leonid Fedorovich include cameras, he squeezed the trigger and shouted at the camera: "Serge, cover! Attack! "After a few takes of the aircraft sat down, I changed the film cartridge and the machine is once again rising to the sky. At the end of the shooting day Bykov literally fell out of the plane and plopped down on the green grass of the airfield. "Well, how are you?" - I asked, running up to him, and heard in response: "Wink plenku- see!»
In early June, we began filming scenes "at the airport." Since the Bulls did not like it duplicated, he tried to do all the stunts himself. And during the filming pretty well mastered to manage the aircraft. However, in the air, he did not raise them, but itself started the engine and taxied on the airfield. Sometimes without pads is not complete. Somehow he could not calculate the rate, and the right wheel fell into a hole by a pyrotechnic explosion. Plane pecked nose flew propeller, rear wheel broke off with the rack. Bulls earned a hefty lump on his forehead, but not upset because of this. The fact that the accident occurred on the "Jake" painted on board with notes and treble clef. As the plane take to repair Kiev to lose a lot of time, it was decided to restore the "iron bird" in place in the home. Provident mechanic seized from Kiev a few spare blades, which were immediately installed on the damaged car. But for the rear chassis welding was needed. And then it took the operator V. Kondratiev. He put the mutilated part in the trunk of his car and drove to the station in Chernigov Young Engineers, where he had friends. However, when he arrived at the station there was no one. Had the operator to "catch" them to their homes. Learning that he was shooting a film about Bykov frontline pilots, masters gladly agreed to help them. Rack brewed, and the next morning the aircraft was ready to fly again
Meanwhile, a few days a new state of emergency had happened: a painting by artist went as Darkie Anatoly Mateshko that enticed starring role in another film. Next, listen to the story of the film operator V. Kondratiev: "I remember that morning I met Bykov at the buffet. He was frustrated and crushed in his hand a piece of paper. In response to my surprised look, he handed me a telegram from the studio: "Urgently send to Kiev Mateshko." What can you do? Let's go on set, and just then the casting director brought from Kyiv "wet behind the ears" - young people - students of theatrical institute, just graduated from the first course. They presented the bulls. He examined the novice actors professional look, searching new Darkie, and stopped at nineteen, the boy, Sergei Podgorny ... »
Meanwhile, until the end of the shooting remained for another month, and September 8-10, has starred finals: Maestro, Makarych and Grasshopper are the graves of the two pilots, one of whom was the bride of their comrade Romeo. As we now know, the film ends with an episode when the Maestro and Makarych sitting in the desert near the monument, and against the background of the final frame will sound the song "For that guy».
In mid-September the group relocated to the studio Dovzhenko, which was to shoot pavilions. So, September 20-24, filmed an episode in the scenery "dining": Grasshopper, masterfully filled up "Messer" in front of home squadron, he comes into the dining room, where comrades organize a reception he
In those days it was shot and the other "table" episode, when the pilots' second singing "Darkie commemorate the deceased. The next few days were filmed scenes in the scenery, "Hata girls", "tent", "Hut 2nd Squadron." Parallel starred dogfights
Filming ended in mid-October, after which the assembly began. It lasted until December 6. Six days later, a film without the amendments adopted at the studio, and on 27 December the delivery of the tape in Ukraine State Committee for Cinematography. On it were invited not only to high-ranking officials of the Ukrainian cinema, but also those for whom, in fact, said the film - pilots veterans. One of them was the famous Soviet ace, three times Hero of the Soviet Union shot down in aerial combat 156 59 Nazi planes, Alexander Pokryshkin. Tape it literally shook. When the lights came on in the room, it did not escape from the present that Pokryshkin wipes tears
And then the picture looked himself prototype Maestro Vitaliy Popkov. Here is his story about it: "It was a career in Kiev, called Lena Bykov, went with him to the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, scroll movie. Minister persists: what kind of film, said people do not return from a mission, die, and live singing songs. And concludes: this has not been at the front and could not be. I ask the Minister whether he was alone at the front? Logic officer surprising was not responsible, but I know. And then I told the minister that flew on one of the two planes, purchased with money donated by jazz Utesov and our regiment. And Leonid Osipovich with his musicians came to us at the airport, and we played together and sang together. Sure. Affected him, perhaps, not so much my reasoning as the general's epaulettes and two heroic stars ... »
Largely because of the good reviews of former soldiers who managed to see the film before its release on the wide screen, the USSR State Committee for Cinematography has decided to encourage filmmakers. February 6, 1974 an order was issued on payment of their remuneration. It was a fair decision, given that the tape has been removed from the big savings: from tempered its statement of 381 thousand rubles was spent 325,000. Among the promotion was 39 people. When awarding highlight the director Leonid Bykov: he paid 200 rubles prize and awarded the title of "the director of the 1st category" (for example: the actors A. Smirnov, V. Talashko and S. Ivanov paid 50 rubles)
Meanwhile, the leadership of the Dovzhenko Film Studios amount of remuneration mainly filmmakers seem insufficient, and it will apply to the State Committee for Cinematography of the USSR that the author of the script (L. Bykov, E. and A. Onopriyenko Satskaya) raised the fee from 6 rubles to the maximum - 8 thousands. However, this trick will not work: at the State Cinema Committee considered that "the work of the team is encouraged convincingly and increased fee does not seem appropriate." This is despite the fact that a few months later the movie "go to fight some" old man "will bring together a number of awards at various film festivals and generate revenue in the hundreds of millions of rubles
On the wide screen film released August 12, 1974. And by the end of the year collected in their sessions 44.3 million viewers (4 th), which was a big surprise: the time movies about the Great Patriotic War a "cash" almost collected