Kin-dza-dza!
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- For the musician, see Kindzadza.
| Kin-Dza-Dza! | |
|---|---|
 VHS cover |
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| Directed by | Georgi Daneliya |
| Written by | Georgi Daneliya Revaz Gabriadze |
| Starring | Stanislav Lyubshin Yevgeni Leonov Yury Yakovlev |
| Music by | Gia Kancheli |
| Cinematography | Pavel Lebeshev |
| Editing by | Natalya Dobrunova |
| Distributed by | Sovexportfilm |
| Release date(s) | 1986 |
| Running time | 135 min. |
| Language | Georgian/Russian |
| IMDb profile | |
Kin-Dza-Dza! (Кин-Дза-Дза! in Russian, pronounced "Kin-Dzuh-DZUH") was a 1986 Soviet science fiction film released by the Mosfilm studio and directed by Georgi Danelia, with a story by Georgi Danelia and Revaz Gabriadze. The movie was filmed in color and runs for 135 minutes. It can be considered a cult film, especially among Russians, and its humorous dialogue is frequently quoted in that country.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The story takes place on the desert planet "Plyuk" (pronounced "Plewk") in the "Kin-Dza-Dza" galaxy, where two humans - Uncle Vova and Fiddler - are accidentally stranded due to an alien teleportation device. The movie describes their long quest to find a way back home.
The natives of the planet appear human, with deceptively primitive-looking technology and a barbaric culture, which satirically resembles that of humans. They are telepathic; the only spoken words normally used in their culture are “koo” and “kew”, the latter being a swear word. The society of Plyuk is divided into two categories: Chatlanians and Patsaks. Chatlanians are privileged, and a system of rituals must be followed by the Patsaks to show flattery. The basis of their difference is unexplainable (a source of a humorous episode), and for all practical matters they are distinguished with aid of a small handheld device (visator).
The only group empowered to use weapons (“transglukators”) and enforce their will appears to be etsylopps. The nominal leader of the Plyukian society is named Pe-Zhe; The Fiddler and Uncle Vova briefly encounter him sitting in a spa in his private premises. He appears dumb and does not demonstrate any willpower when they force their way from the underground prison to find a way home. The fuel of Plyuk is called lootz and is made from water. All naturally present water has apparently been processed into lootz, so drinking water is a valuable commodity (in fact, it can only be made from lootz).
A good deal of the plot is based the fact that ordinary matchsticks (kts) (or, rather, the chemicals of the match head) are extremely precious.
[edit] A Concise Dictionary of The Plyukanian Language
- Kts (pronounced "ke-tze") — matches
- Chatl — a form of money
- Tsak — a small bell worn in the nose and indicating the low social status of the wearer
- Tentura and Antitentura — two opposite parts of the Universe. Some galaxies exist in Tentura and some in Antitentura.
- Pepelats — an interplanetary spacecraft
- Gravytsapa — a component for the pepelats which allows intergalactic travel
- Lootz — the fuel used by the pepelats, it is (or is made of) water
- Kappa — a button
- Etsikh — a box for prisoners
- Etsylopp — a policeman (it is in fact a word "police" spelled backwards)
- Kew — a socialy acceptable curse
- Ku — all the other words
[edit] Video
The movie has been released on DVD in Russia but has gained virtually no notice elsewhere. This is largely due to the fact that there is no official release of the movie with English subtitles. This has led many people to illegally download copies of the movie from popular peer-to-peer services, where it can easily be found. Most English-speaking people who have seen the movie have used the "fan subtitles" here: part 1, part 2 and here.
There are currently no plans to release the DVD in the United States or Europe.
[edit] Cast
- Stanislav Lyubshin - Vladimir Nikolayevich Mashkov (Uncle Vova)
- Levan Gabriadze - Gedevan Alexandrovich Alexidze (Fiddler)
- Yevgeny Leonov - Uef
- Yury Yakovlev - Bi
- Olga Mashnaya - Dekont (from the planet Alpha)
- Irina Shmelyova - Tachanochnitsa
- Lev Perfilov - Kyrr dissident chatlanin with a transglukator
- Anatoli Sirenko
- Georgi Daneliya - Abradox (from the planet Alpha)
- Aleksandra Dorokhina
- Galina Daneliya-Yurkova
- Alexander Martynov
- Valentin Marenkov
- Rezo Khobua
- Igor Bogolyubov
- Valentin Bukin - mustached etzilop in the egg-shaped pepelatz
- Valentin Golubenko
- Alexander Litovkin
- Valentin Marenkov
- Tatyana Novitskaya
- Vladimir Fyodorov - Yellow pants"
- Rene Khobua - was not in the cast, but present in subtitles
- Harry Schweiz
- Gennady Yalovich - one-handed contrabandist, has green pants
- Y. Voronkov
- N. Garo
- G. Ivanov
- O. Ivanova
- I. Kan
- O. Matveyev
- V. Makhmutov
- T. Perfilyeva
- L. Solodenko
- V. Frolov
[edit] Animated version
An animated version of the same story, named Kin-Dza-Dza-Dza!, is being made in Russia, and is planned for release in December 2008. This version will be targeted more at children and the international audience. Work began on February 12, 2005, and it has a budget of three million rubles. The finished film is expected to be 100 minutes long.
