What is fiction, and what is historical truth in a brilliant film-tale about the arap Peter the Great

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

The adaptation of Pushkin's unfinished novel Peter the Great's Arap was conceived and filmed as a fairly serious two-part historical film, but after the intervention of censorship it turned into a melodrama, even the original name was changed by the artistic council. Vladimir Vysotsky bitterly said that they took him to the main role, but in the end he turned out to be.

Most of all, Vysotsky in this role was attracted by the opportunity to play a role. He worked passionately on the set, and a few days after the start he brought the director two songs - "The Robber" and "Domes", which were to be performed in the film. However, as it was decided later during the installation, their level was too serious. Director Alexander Mitta considered that the songs, although at that time everyone was still sure that they were filming a serious historical drama.

However, the audience, unaware of the friction between filmmakers, enthusiastically embraced this beautiful and romantic story. The premiere took place on December 6, 1976, and in just 24 days the picture was watched by more than 33 million viewers. The Soviet Union has sometimes performed real miracles. Despite the undoubted success of the film, the CPSU Central Committee began to receive massive letters of complaints and criticism. Workers Anonymous saw many shortcomings in it. It is not known exactly who initiated the persecution, but even serious writers were involved in it. Mikhail Sholokhov, who by that time was almost 70 years old, sent a letter to Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev, sharply negatively assessing the film,

In fact, if anyone were to make claims of weak adherence to historical facts, then they should have been addressed to Alexander Sergeevich himself. Paying great attention to a reliable depiction of the era about which he wrote, in relation to the history of his own family, Pushkin was more guided by artistic taste. His biographers are well aware that the image of the main character, Abram Petrovich Hannibal, has a rather collective character, he even has autobiographical features. Scrupulously adhering to historical facts about Peter the Great, Pushkin relied at the same time on historical anecdotes, which vividly and expressively reflected the character of this great and extraordinary ruler.

The real life story of the ancestor of our famous classic is very far from the romantic tale of Alexander Mitta. Two brothers, sons of an influential African prince, kidnapped and sold in Constantinople, were indeed brought as a gift to Peter I, who loved all sorts of rarities. It happened in 1705 (according to another version, in 1698). The tsar baptized the boys, and one of them, Abram, became his trusted orderly and secretary in 10 years. He really went abroad with Peter, studied there for 1, 5 years in an engineering school and served for some time in the French army. He returned to Russia in 1723 (without any scandals with black babies), and was assigned to the Preobrazhensky regiment as an engineer-lieutenant of a bombardment company.

During the life of his great patron Abram Petrovich did not marry at all, and after the death of Peter, he fell into disgrace at first. However, exiled to the Tobolsk garrison, he served in Russia in the Corps of Engineers, and with the accession of Elizabeth, the talented military engineer again went up the hill. Over time, he became the manager of the Engineering part of all of Russia, supervised the construction of the fortifications of the Tobol-Ishim line, as well as the Kronstadt, Riga and others. Having risen to the rank of general-in-chief, Hannibal was dismissed in 1762.

In family life, he also succeeded, although the first marriage was a real test for him. If this real story had been filmed "without cuts", then it would have turned out to be a cruel and tragic melodramatic thriller. The first wife of Hannibal was the young Greek woman Evdokia Andreevna Dioper, the daughter of a naval officer. The girl was given in marriage to the terrible Moor by force, and she did not love her husband. As a result, Hannibal either found her with her lover, or guessed about treason when he saw the first-born - the blonde and white-skinned girl clearly could not be his daughter. The deceived husband accused his wife of treason, after which she tried to poison him. In subsequent events, Abram Petrovich did not resemble his intelligent literary and cinematic double, but rather Shakespeare's Moor. From the materials of the divorce case, it follows that Hannibal "beat the unfortunate with fatal beatings unusually" and for many years kept her "on guard" on the verge of starvation.

This imprisonment lasted 11 years, and after 6 years Abram Petrovich remarried, without finally divorcing his first wife. Christina-Regina von Sheberg turned out to be a better choice for him, and after this complicated matter was finally completed and the first love went to the Tikhvin Vvedensky Monastery, the family healed peacefully. In total, Hannibal had 11 children, of whom seven survived. Pushkin was the grandson of one of them, Osip.

The famous arap of Peter the Great lived to be 85 years old, but until the end of his life he was not restrained in relation to spirits and women. Probably, the true story of the life of this unusual person today could also become a real bestseller, although, unfortunately, it has very little in common with the beloved film.

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