"Straw Hat" - a film that won hearts

The Wodeville "Straw Hat" was written by the French playwrights Eugene Labish and Mark-Michel in the middle of the 19th century. It was at this time that the vaudeville genre - light, musical, unobtrusive, not crushing philosophical reflections, became widespread in Europe and enjoyed immense popularity among theatergoers. The main spectators of the productions at that time were a new social class - a bourgeois who did not have a high education and taste, and spent most of his time on making money, which was considered the only element of significance in society.

Plot

The play "Straw Hat" (or "Hat from the Italian straw" in the literal translation from French) fits perfectly into a number of works created at that time. There is not a single positive character in it, and the plot is simple and trivial. The protagonist is a jerk called Fadinar. He decided to improve his financial situation at the expense of the dowry, which was given to his daughter by a provincial rich man, farmer Nonakura. The groom, having ordered the servants to prepare the estate for the scheduled celebrations, saddled his favorite horse and went to meet the cavalcade of the provincial relatives accompanying the beautiful young Elena. However, at the entrance of the wedding ceremony to the city Fadinar leaves it to check whether everything is ready in the house for the reception of guests.

His path runs through the park, in which the lovers decided to retire - Madame Boportyui and Lieutenant Emil Tavernier. The horse of the main character is picked up by madam thrown in a fit of passion. When it is found out - the straw hat is already almost eaten. The lady and her knight are occupying the house of Fadinar with a demand to compensate for the loss, for the jealous husband of Boportyui will not forgive his wife of betrayal, which can well be guessed by the absence of a hat. This is the beginning of the misadventures of the hero, who, being a true Frenchman, can not allow such a discomfiture of the lady and agrees to the set conditions. However, to find exactly the same hat is not so simple. During the search, there are many unexpected encounters and events, and they end when, among the wedding gifts, exactly what Fadinar needs is a straw hat. The finale of the comedy in French is a happy one - Fadinar married the beautiful Elena and received her millions, and the deceived Monsieur Bopertjui never learned about the betrayal of his wife.

Screening

Vaudeville was screened six times: three times in France (in 1910, 1927 and 1940), in Germany in 1939, in Czechoslovakia in 1971 and in the Soviet Union at the Lenfilm studios. The film was directed by Leonid Kvinikhidze. December 31, 1974 on the screens came a two-part film "Straw Hat". The actors involved in the film were popular and loved by many. The roles were played by: Andrey Mironov (Fadinar), Ekaterina Vasilyeva (Madame Bopertuy), Igor Kvasha (Lieutenant Emil Tavernier), Lyudmila Gruchenko, Yefim Kopelyan, Mikhail Kazakov, Zinoviy Gerdt, Alisa Freindlikh and many others.

The role of Fadinar became a take-off and decisive in the fate of Andrei Mironov. It was because of his participation in this film that he was denied the role of Zhenya Lukashin ("The Irony of Fate, or With a Light Steam"), which was later played by Andrei Myagkov. However, the footage from the "Straw Hat" with Mironov's participation, we can see in the TV set in the apartment of Hope. Before the advent of "Irony", the most favorite among the films seen on New Year's Eve was this film, and the most popular headdress was a straw hat. Photos of actors in the image of vaudeville heroes enjoyed great popularity, and the film itself was literally parsed into phrases. The songs performed by Andrei Mironov and Lyudmila Gurchenko are not only recognizable, but also loved, and are still popular.