premature

another priced find from mcs! or so i thought. i've never heard of this movie before so i was quite hesitant to buy it from mai-mai (the saleslady who i call ate even if i'm way older than her!). synopsis and movie info at the back provide nothing (what can you expect?!). i can always say that my viewer can't read the copy once i see that this was a blah, so i bought it anyway, plus vanya and his supposed journey got me interested. stories told from a child's point of view or the ones where the central character is a child almost always provide a nice movie experience.

true enough, the movie was remarkable. it opened my eyes to harsh realities outside what i used to see in the philippine setting. while i always thought that what we have here is already appalling, russia, in all of its former glory, still has to do a lot of cleaning, too. not that i regal with the situation sharapova and her country has to deal with, it just makes me acutely aware of the grim facts of today's life. there may be no wars to contend with in other parts of the world, but kids of vanya's age are forced to mature prematurely and live well beyond their years due to negligence (from their parents) and need (to survive).

thoughts of vanya the italianetz still linger (hehehe… sing a song) because he was a brave one, i can't imagine going through what he'd gone through. he might be willing to break rules to get what he needs (like tiptoeing his way to get his records from the director's safe or keep some dibs from kolyan so that he can pay irka to teach him to read) but all these efforts are only to equip himself with needed tools (such as the skill to read) to at least give himself a chance to be "complete". what I like about the character is that he didn't allow himself to be completely corrupted, just did "enough" to get by. so he won't get unwarranted attention from other train passengers, he posed as the son of a drunken man. when he was finally cornered by madam's man, he did the unthinkable, hurt himself by trying to slash his wrist, a trick that he learned from older orphans, so that would-be attackers will have a "change of heart". so, he was also practical and won't stoop down until it's all over.

he understood that life might have been better if he allowed himself to be adopted by the italian couple, but took the chance that has presented itself. all these, of course, knowing that he might not get the result that he's longing for. i think the obstacles that he was able to withstand were solved in the most realistic way possible, that is through the help of others and some ounce of luck because after all, he's a child… helpless, somewhat unsure and naïve.

the ending gave me a sense of relief, as he was able to find his mom... vanya will finally be able to experience how it is to be a child. while he found his mom, vanya was also able to give his good bud a new lease in life, as the italian couple adopted anton instead of him. in his letter to anton:

Hello Anton:

Thank you for your letter. I didn’t know that oranges grow where you live. It rains all the time here but it is warm inside. Momma and I send our greetings to you, Roberto and Claudia. Come visit us some time.

Vanya Solntsev

kolya spiridonov essayed vanya magnificently! realistic interpretation, no frills, just pure emotions through simple gestures. his eyes, i think tell it all. the supporting cast was also superb. one major thing that helped the movie as good as it is, was the setting. the barren and frozen landscape only adds to the gloomy picture of stale hope in the orphans' eyes. only the start of spring provides a sense of faith that a new couple might come to consider adopting anyone of them, or in vanya's case, his chance to finally make everything happen.

i love it… it now has become "prized", rather than just one of those "priced" ones. what's next?!! mai-mai, any recommendations?! (",)