Secrets of Captain Nemo: What hastened the departure of Vladislav Dvorzhetsky

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

On April 26, the famous Soviet actor Vladislav Dvorzhetsky would have turned 81 years old, but for 42 years he has been dead. He was given only 39 years, but during this time he managed to gain all-Union popularity after his roles in the films "Running", "Solaris", "Sannikov Land", "Captain Nemo", etc. His film career lasted only 10 years, but was published annually several films with his participation. Unfortunately, this demand in the profession became one of the reasons for his premature departure …

Vladislav inherited his love for art from his parents: his father, Vaclav Dvorzhetsky, was a famous actor, and his mother, Taisiya Ray, was a ballerina. Coming from a Polish noble family, his father spent about 10 years in Stalin's camps for "counter-revolutionary activities", which is why for a long time after that he could not get a job in any theater. Under such circumstances, Vladislav's childhood could hardly be called happy. When he was 11 years old, his parents divorced, and his father remarried - to the director Riva Levita, whom he met in exile. In the early 1950s. Vladislav lived with his father's new family in Saratov, where he graduated from school.

Despite the fact that his passion for the theater was passed on to him from his parents in childhood, Vladislav did not come to the acting profession right away. In 1956, without warning anyone, he suddenly decided to return to his native Omsk. There he graduated from a medical school, after which he served 2 years in the army on Sakhalin, and then for another 3 years he remained on long-term service - he was a paramedic of the regiment. Then Vladislav for some time worked as the head of a pharmacy in the Kuril Islands. He planned to continue his education at a medical institute, but, returning to his hometown, was late for the start of the entrance exams.

On the advice of his mother, he entered the studio at the Omsk Children's Theater, and after completing his studies, he began to perform there. But Vladislav did not achieve any success there - he did not get any noticeable roles. He even thought about changing his profession again and going on a geological expedition. I had to earn money … knitting! Having learned this skill from his mother, he knitted dresses for the actresses of his theater. Later it became a favorite hobby that always balanced it. For knitting, he patiently sat for hours, but if suddenly he did not like something, he could dissolve everything in one second. Outwardly, he looked like a calm and balanced person, but inside there were always storms raging.

He began his acting career only at the age of 27, and at the same time incredibly quickly gained recognition and popularity. Since his youth, Vladislav had the gift of capturing the attention of others. Behind his back, he was often called an alien. His unusual "Martian" appearance was mesmerizing, and his huge eyes had a hypnotic effect on women. Probably, the same effect was produced by his photographs on the directors Alexander Alov and Vladimir Naumov, who were looking for the main character for their film based on M. Bulgakov's play "Running". An unknown provincial actor from the Omsk Youth Theater was immediately summoned to audition. At the age of 30, the actor played 50-year-old General Khludov with practically no makeup - both facial expressions, gestures, and gait were very believable. In Solaris, his reincarnations were just as amazing.

After The Run, the actor became incredibly popular. He received many new proposals, but he did not choose roles, but the directors with whom he wanted to work. For the sake of a secondary role for Tarkovsky in "Solaris", he refused the main role in the film adaptation of "My Life" by Chekhov, where he was supposed to act with his father. The participation of Vladislav Dvorzhetsky in the filming guaranteed the success of any film. Critics, also under the magical influence of his talent and charm, always wrote positive reviews about him, even if the films were weak. True, there were very few of these in his filmography.

In the image of Captain Nemo in the film of the same name based on the novels by Jules Verne "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" and "Steam House" Dvorzhetsky was especially convincing. His innate sophistication, intelligence, aristocracy, external restraint and mystery came in handy here. So he was both in the frame and behind the scenes. Actress Zemfira Tsakhilova, who played the wife of Captain Nemo, said: "". This mystery and aloofness acted magnetically on women. After the film was released, thousands of female fans bombarded the studio with letters asking for the actor's address.

Vladislav Dvorzhetsky seemed to have a presentiment that fate had given him a very short time, and seemed to be in a hurry to live, constantly changing cities, habits, professions and women. He managed to be married 4 times. Natalya Bondarchuk said about him: "". At the same time, the actor was sure that all his life he was protected by a guardian angel from all misfortunes. Twice he managed to avoid accidents in which other people died - once he missed the train, the other time - the trolleybus. But death, which followed on his heels, nevertheless overtook him ahead of schedule.

Such a rhythm of life, with endless moving, filming, overwork, could not but affect the health of the actor. He started having heart problems, but there was no time for treatment. In 1976, Vladislav suffered 2 heart attacks in a row, but instead of undergoing a course of rehabilitation, as the doctors advised him, he returned to the set and began to travel around the country for creative meetings with the audience.

It would seem that at that moment Dvorzhetsky could feel absolutely happy, because he achieved everything he wanted: finally he was able to buy an apartment in Moscow, finally found happiness and harmony in his fourth marriage with Natalya Litvinenko, and finally achieved demand, popularity and recognition. But in this constant race for new goals, he drove himself.

During one of the trips, at a creative meeting with the audience in Gomel, his heart could not stand it. The third heart attack was the last. May 28, 1978 Vladislav Dvorzhetsky passed away. His girlfriend, actress Tatyana Tkach, said: "".

His younger brother, by a fateful coincidence, also lived for only 39 years: The short and bright path of Evgeny Dvorzhetsky.