Little Vera: The Film Companion 8: The Film Companion (KINOfiles Film Companion) (NO. 8)

Vasili Pichul’s Little Vera was released in 1988 during the early Glasnost years of Gorbachev. With a no-holds-barred screenplay by Pichul’s wife Maria Khmelik, this story of the seamier side of life for ordinary people was a box-office hit and went on to receive the European Film Award for best screenplay as well as the Special Jury Prize at Montreal. This first in-full exploration of the film places it within the genre of "youth cinema" and corrects the Western label given to the film, which featured the first sex act in Soviet cinema, as "the first Soviet sex film." Looking at the wider context of the box-office hit Little Vera, Frank Beardow focuses on the film's use of space and representations of complex family relationships. Directed by Vasisli Pichul and released in 1988 "Little Vera" received the European Film Award for best screenplay as well as the special jury prize at Montreal. Looking at the wider context of the film, this text observes its use of space and representations of complex family relationships, placing "Little Vera" within the context of youth cinema and overturning its reputation in the West as the "first ever Soviet sex film" Vasili Pichul's 'Little Vera' was released in 1988 during the early glasnost years of Gorbachev. With a no holds barred screenplay by Pichul's wife Maria Khmelik, this story of the seamier side of life for ordinary people was a box-office hit and went on to receive the European Film Award for best screenplay as well as the Special Jury Prize at Montreal. This first in-full exploration of the film places it within the genre of 'youth cinema' and corrects the Western label given to the film, which featured the first sex act in Soviet cinema, as 'the first Soviet sex film' This text looks at the acclaimed 1988 film "Little Vera", observing its use of space and representations of complex family relationships, placing "Little Vera" within the context of youth cinema. Looking at the wider context of the box-office hit Little Vera, directed by Vasili Pichul, Frank Beardow focuses on the film's use of space and representations of complex family relationships