ABSTRACT
The sudden fall of the Soviet empire and the old order in August 1991 made a great impression on filmmakers. Most of them had wished for the death of “the evil empire” but were shocked because it changed their lives so dramatically. The radical deterioration of life in Russia in 1992 pushed some film directors, mainly those who had prospered as liberals in the past, to express their disappointment with the new freedoms and the ascendance of democrats to power. Among the intellectuals who criticize Russia’s present democratic order, the most active and unforgiving is Govorukhin. The popularity of critical movies in 1987-1989 apparently gave filmmakers expectations that, with yet more critical attitudes toward reality and Communist ideology, the public would be even more eager to see their movies. However, during the next period, 1989-1992, most Russians preferred Western movies that, while full of sex and violence, offered happy endings to the drama of social conflicts.
