On the first day of the new year, the film Thunder: A Difficult Childhood is released on the Kinopoisk platform.
The director was Oleg Trofim, who shot the film Major Grom: The Plague Doctor.
Despite the fact that the first picture of the series failed at the box office, it became the leader in terms of the number of views on the Netflix and Kinopoisk platforms.
This time, filmmakers immediately relied on online rental.
The plot was based on the original story written by Artyom Gabrelyanov, Ekaterina Krasner and Evgeny Fedotov, since very little attention was paid to Igor Grom's childhood in comics.
The roles of father and son in the film were played by Sergey Marin and Kai Getz, respectively.
In addition, such actors as Irina Rozanova, Alexei Vedernikov, Daniil Vorobyov, Anton Adasinsky, Vladimir Yaganov are involved in the film.
The action takes place in an alternative St. Petersburg of the 1990s, however, the film contains attributes inherent in real time and various Easter eggs.
Viewers whose childhood just happened at that time will definitely feel a surge of nostalgia.
The underworld in the film looks a little naive, and the gloomy atmosphere is shown quite restrained (perhaps due to the fact that the film is still about children).
According to the plot, Igor's father, Major Konstantin Gromov, devoted to his work, is always busy at work.
He, like many parents in those days, fails to pay much attention to raising his son, and every time Igor tries to establish contact with his father, he is called to work.
Despite this, the paternal figure in Igor's life occupies a central role.
While a teenager and a friend figure out how to make money for a cherished dream, his father is trying to reduce crime in the city and catch those who disturb the peace of citizens: drug dealers, corrupt officials, and most importantly, a mysterious figure nicknamed Anubis, who appears in the mask of an ancient Egyptian god .
The scenes with the villain and the magical rituals performed by his followers are captivating, and the metaphorical image of Anubis leaves viewers with a wide scope for imagination.
© Frame from the filming of the film "Thunder: A Difficult Childhood"/kinopoisk.ru
"Difficult Childhood" is significantly inferior to the first tape in terms of dynamism and the number of bright plot twists, but wins in graphic content.
Visual design, animation inserts in combination with titles are beyond praise.
The running time of the picture (1 hour 20 minutes) seems short for a wide release, but it is enough to get involved in the story of the future Major Grom, understand the course of his thoughts, see the spiritual wound and comprehend the values that he, as an adult, will cherish.
By the way, in the tape, the viewer will also learn how the future Major Grom acquired a creed that he will always follow: “Think, think!”
The young actor Kai Getz managed to convey the breakdown of his character, who is faced with a difficult reality and is undergoing an internal transformation.
Sergey Marin as Konstantin Grom also looks organic on the screen, especially in the most dramatic episodes: the actor skillfully showed the internal resistance of his character in choosing the right path.
At the same time, together with Alexei Vedernikov, Marin skillfully played in comical scenes.
In general, in the film, all the characters turned out to be very holistic and alive, whether it be the head of the police department in the person of Irina Rozanova, Gromov Sr.'s partner played by Alexei Vedernikov, or young Ignat (Vladimir Yaganov), who later becomes Grom's informant in The Plague Doctor.
Daniil Vorobyov deserves special attention.
The actor previously announced himself quite loudly in the series “Union of Salvation.
Time of Wrath ”and“ End of the World ”, however, in“ Difficult Childhood ”it was revealed in a completely different role, and it is difficult to imagine someone else in the role of the charismatic Yuri Smirnov.
The master of disguise, Vorobyov deftly, effortlessly juggles the emotions of the viewer, not forgetting to fix his hair.
Frames with him (in the spirit of Clint Eastwood in crime westerns) bring true aesthetic pleasure.
After the credits, the authors of the tape showed a memorable episode with Konstantin Khabensky.
This time the actor was given a little more screen time, and he filled it with his impressive performance and amazing ability to get used to the character.
It remains to be hoped that the storyline with the artist will be one of the central ones in the continuation of the franchise.
It can be unequivocally stated that both the first film about Grom, The Plague Doctor, and Difficult Childhood are an important milestone in the history of Russian cinema and the artistic development of the superhero theme, not only in terms of creativity, but also of the film business as a whole.
Both films occupy a worthy place in the expanding domestic superhero universe and are an indicator of the well-coordinated work of actors, producers, screenwriters, graphic designers, director and all other members of the film crew.