Comments on Animation Blog: Galina Barina "A Long Time Ago" (1990)

The author of article had mistake. The last name o...

2010-01-20T12:42:10.168Z

The author of article had mistake. The last name of director is Barinova, not Barina. Please, no offence. She isn't related to Elena Barinova, who worked at Kievnauchfilm studios.

Too long to precisely remember I wrote my English ...

2009-11-12T10:13:14.047Z

Too long to precisely remember I wrote my English dissertation on the differences between Juvenalian and Horatian satire. Just maybe the movie in question has traces of the latter but on reflection it is more philosophically pointing to a universal truth about government and life in general. We move in circles I think. I know Ivan Maximov's "Bolero", though "The Tree and the Cat" and "Laziness" are movies I do not know so thanks for the trigger. I shall get viewing.

Also, the main theme of the film can be applied to...

2009-11-12T09:41:27.329Z

Also, the main theme of the film can be applied to far more than politics.

Ivan Maximov's 1992 film "Bolero" is another way of saying the same thing, but stripped down to a very basic and less serious form:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phNOa9BWBdo

I think one defining factor is that a satire would...

2009-11-12T09:31:17.786Z

I think one defining factor is that a satire would mock its main characters and/or subject matter, but this film does not. It is akin to 'The Tree and the Cat' in that respect, albeit with a very different style.

An example of satire in Russian animation would be "Laziness":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmRUeZpsSFA

Hello Niffiwan and glad you got in touch, On refle...

2009-11-10T08:54:22.446Z

Hello Niffiwan and glad you got in touch,
On reflection I do think you are right about it only being partially a satire. But the music still irritates albeit being suited to the film at that stage. Funnily enough I missed the return of the music. Writing so many reviews it is a rare luxury when I can watch a film even twice - to my acute ebarrassment when I get it wrong. I'm going to write some more on Galina's work. Maybe view the material thrice!

Good job! And you noticed the machine making the f...

2009-11-10T01:18:02.176Z

Good job! And you noticed the machine making the food that discarded it in the process. :) I saw that, but I wasn't sure what it meant exactly.

I liked the music in the beginning, myself - I thought it set the "prehistoric, savage" mood quite nicely. And notice how that music returns when their time of being media darlings is over, and the savageness outside comes back to demand tribute from the city?

I wouldn't call the film a satire, myself, though parts of it are (such as the depiction of journalists). It's too serious, and the theme too general. I would call it a parable, rather.