Our colleague Anton Krasovsky expressed a universal formulation for describing not only the cultural results of the year, but also the results of the year in general in one of his videos: “There are no forces, that's the truth.

Hurry to die already. " 

This general attitude, it should be noted, is somehow smoothed out, if not by the major, then by the carnivalism of the cultural events that have taken place over the past year.

At a time when socio-political topics are knitted like an unripe persimmon under a tree (in fact, thousands of mouths are chewing on the same thing), the cultural sphere seems to offer something new.

Or at least interesting. 

What good has happened this year? 

Our people flew into space.

In general, this business has been common since 1961.

But this time the actress and the director flew, and at once for 12 days.

Yulia Peresild and Klim Shipenko visited the ISS and filmed there 30 hours of film material for the new film. 

Like everything that happens, this caused a storm of indignation in the spirit that they flew there for PR, depriving their legitimate positions of professional cosmonauts who had been preparing for the flight for years, and it is better to shoot space in the pavilion - this has been proven by all world directors.

But what difference does that make?

First, everything that happens in the world is PR.

And it's good that we also succeeded in the cultural sphere.

Secondly, astronauts are already constantly flying to the ISS, and this will not surprise anyone.

Thirdly, in this particular situation, it is not shooting that is important, achievements are important.

Let's hope that the film will be spectacular and massive.

Still, it's better to shoot something in space than not to shoot anything at all.

At the same time, the film "Major Thunder: The Plague Doctor" can be considered an objective success of Russian cinema in 2021.

To a certain extent, this is a phenomenon for our country.

You can start with the fact that this is a film based on comics, that is, referring to a part of the culture of an undoubtedly massive, but niche one.

This project developed according to completely Hollywood patterns, at least externally: a superhero, a youth audience, a huge amount of merchandise, autograph sessions at comic and game festivals, sequels, prequels and spin-offs in the form of printed editions.

What's the bottom line?

At the box office, the film didn't even pay off.

Which seems to be sad.

But here you need to remember that this is a pandemic year - people either lost the habit of going anywhere, or it was forbidden to do so. 

And then the film shot along with the time in which it appeared - it became the leader in online cinemas.

And not only in Russian, but also in international ones.

So, for several weeks, he took first places in Italy, Spain, Belgium, Switzerland and in 64 other countries. 

And, you know, I watched this movie.

He is simple but solid - such an honest child of the industry.

And this gives hope that we have a cinema industry, it can work and bear fruit and compete with these fruits at the global level.

Sounds like a good result, right? 

In what used to be called visual art, and now more and more modern, the main result is probably the opening of a new luxurious exhibition space in Moscow, GES-2. 

Everything here was also very modern, even fashionable.

Large masses of the people learned about HPP-2 thanks to the sculpture “Big Clay No. 4” by Urs Fischer.

The public, as it is typical for them, was indignant - they put excrement on the embankment!

And even on the people's money!

Then they explained for a long time that this sculpture depicts a piece of clay in the hands of a sculptor, that it is a wandering, travels around the cities, came to us from Florence and will soon leave, that they put it on the money of a businessman.

But the main thing has already happened - people started talking about HPP-2.

And now everyone wants to go there - to look at the sterile design and moderately shocking photographs, as well as to drink coffee for 400 rubles.

To the gallery page

The theater has turned inside out this year.

The fact is that in the theater itself, backstage events are much more important than performances, while the viewer sees only what is on the stage.

Now there is enough entertainment and in addition to the theater, moreover, the theater has become expensive, and pandemic restrictions do not help people to sit in the hall.

Therefore, the theater has become both a media space and an endless informational occasion. 

What is the passage - the artistic director of the Moscow Art Theater has left the post.

Gorky Eduard Boyakov, Vladimir Kekhman was appointed general director.

Within the framework of historical analogies, this plot found its rhyme in Kamergersky Lane.

After all, if the Moscow Art Theater is storming, then not one by one.

Moscow Art Theater.

Artistic director Sergei Zhenovach leaves Chekhov, and Konstantin Khabensky is appointed to his place.

In literature, the main book prize "Big Book" for the third time in 12 years was given to Leonid Yuzefovich for the wonderful, no doubt, the novel "Filelene".

After all, it's nice to read about the struggle of the Russians and Greeks for Greek independence from the Ottoman Empire.

Could you give someone else, just to broaden the horizons of those who read from lists?

They could.

But, apparently, they themselves read from lists, and therefore excellent books like "Koki" by Mikhail Gigolashvili and "Desire to be a city" by Dmitry Bavilsky were bypassed.

But they talked a lot about Pelevin this year.

And it's not even that his new novel "Transhumanism Inc." was released on schedule.

(you read and immediately forget what he was about), but also in the fact that Pelevin, only Alexander, received the literary prize "National Bestseller" for the witty and charming fantasy novel "Pokrov-17". 

Music has been living online for many years, it doesn't care about the pandemic.

Young people will tell you why the new Oksimiron album is better than the old one, and I will briefly note that an absolutely charming format has become my favorite in the music field this year - at the Moscow Conservatory, folk artists read children's fairy tales to classical music of various composers performed by a symphony orchestra ...

A great excuse and a way to rethink Winnie the Pooh after Tchaikovsky and Schubert.

Are we entering the new year with an anxious heart?

And when was it calm with us?

As you can see, no matter what the world does, no matter in what whirlwind it disappears, culture not only survives, but spikes.

Because a time of crisis is the most beneficial for art.

The essence of art is conflict.

And the conflicts, as we can see, are inexhaustible.

So let's not rush to despair.

Let's live for now.

The point of view of the author may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.