Bed and Sofa: The Film Companion (KINOfiles Film Companion)

Bed and Sofa (1927) was directed by Abram Room and remains his most-well known film. It tells the story of a menage a trois (a very daring plot for the Soviet cinema in the 1920s), one woman (Liuda) and two men (Volodia and Kolia). The two men were friends during the Revolution and meet up when Volodia attempts to find living space in Moscow, where Kolia and Liuda live a married life. Kolia treats his wife as a child and she lives entirely within the domestic space. Volodia begins an affair with Liuda. He participates in the housework, brings her magazines, and takes her on plane rides. Kolia, an extremely backbone-less man still lives in his same house with the other two. Most of the film takes place in the one-room apartment and the film's plot revolves around the changing fuctions of this domestic space. Liuda is portrayed as entirely fixated by the bourgeoisie past (objects fill every corner of the cramped room and she does not have a job as a Soviet woman should). The plot comes to fore when Liuda declares she is pregnant and neither man knows for certain if it is their child. Both try to force her to have an abortion and she finally makes her own decision. There was much controversy about the ending of the film, is it happy in that Liuda finally makes a decision without influence of both of the men in her lives. Or, is it sad that she abandons her "family" without asserting herself in that sphere. Julian Graffy's installment, 'Bed and Sofa', in the Russian Cinema Series (Kino) is a top-notch scholarly analysis of all facets of the film. I found it vital in understanding the political background, the meaning of different objects (even Room states that everything object and scene has meaning), and every detail that might help the viewer understand Room's message. Her book contains an a chapter on the director, an analysis of the film scene by scene, and the reception of the film. For someone who knows very little about the Russian culture and the political environment of the 1920s I found this book indispensable in understanding Room's controversial cinematic experiment. I would have liked Graffy to include a little more about the production of the film, but all and all this is a very useful installment in this wonderful series. Bed and Sofa is a film film that is both historically important and sadly relatively unknown to American audiences. Abram Room's Daring 1927 Film, Scripted By Viktor Shklovsky, Is The Story Of A Menage A Trois - One Woman, Two Men - Set In A 1920s Moscow Flat. Successfully Combining Humour And Pathos, The Film Is Remarkable Also For The Frankness Of Its Analysis Of This Triangular Relationship And For The Corrosive Assessment It Gives Of The New Soviet Man And The Everyday Life Of The New Soviet Society - One That Can Find No Place For Women. This Kinofile Is An Account Of The Film, Its Production And The People Who Made It, Its Context, Meanings And Critical Reception. Julian Graffy Offers A Detailed Analysis Of The Film Itself, Placing It Powerfully Not Only In The Context Of Russian And World Cinema, But Also In That Of The Culture, Preoccupations And Politics Of The Moscow Of The Period.--book Jacket. Introduction: Before Bed And Sofa -- Bed And Sofa: An Analysis -- After Bed And Sofa: The Reception Of The Film And The Fate Of Its Themes. Julian Graffy. Alternate Russian Title: Liubovʹ Vtroem (three In Love, Ménage à Trois)--p. [viii]. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [124]-125). Bed and Sofa is a captivating study of the 1927 film by Abram Room about the failure of the sexual revolution in 1920s Russia. The story of a mnage--trois involving one woman and two men, and set in a 1920s Moscow flat, the film is remarkable for its frankness, humor, and its caustic assessment of the new Soviet society, particularly the new Soviet man. Abram Room’s daring 1927 film is the story of a ménage á trois - one woman, two men - set in a 1920s Moscow flat. Remarkable for its frankness, humour and corrosive assessment of the new Soviet society, particularly the new Soviet man, _Bed and Sofa_ has found new and enthusiastic audiences in recent years Abram Room's daring 1927 film is the story of a ménage à trois - one woman, two men - set in a 1920s Moscow flat. Remarkable for its frankness, humour and corrosive assessment of the new Soviet society, particularly the new Soviet man, _Bed and Sofa_ has found new and enthusiastic audiences in recent years.