Reviews
From NETFLIX: Not bad. Felt like a documentary due to the fact that this was filmed in digital. But what gives this movie away as being "just a film" is the horrible acting of everyone but the star, Elena Roth. She does a great job of carrying this movie from the streets of Moscow and St. Petersburg to NYC. Solid independent movie - all due to her performance and the on-the-streets locales. Surprisingly a good movie. Elena Roth should really become an actress, she is likable and indeed she made the movie. In the DVD extras, the director showed other actresses portraying the leading role; I have to say that if Elena Roth had not been chosen for the role this movie would have not been worth seeing. This is a very insightful look at relationships from a different angle. I don’t necessarily think the American guy was a bad person. The age difference between them in the end tore them apart. Interestingly, in real life, this old guy is dating his very own Russian bride, although his bride is Ukrainian... well close enough Elena Roth is a good actress. The storyline is believable. Unfortunately it felt like I was viewing a depressing home video. I kept waiting to be entertained. The director lucked out getting Elena Roth for this movie. She made the movie interesting and worth watching. The rest of the actors were terrible. If you watch the special feature about the making of the movie it shows the other girls that tried out for the part, and they were all awful. The actor that played the male lead looked like the typical 40ish dork that would mail order a Russian bride and then in the special features you find he really does in real life. He just got married to one and that his actual apartment in the movie that they will be living in. What a drag living in that one room apartment. Those Russian brides are better off in Russia if that's what they end up with. …I agree with one of the above reviewers...Elena Roth was fantastic in this movie...and the rest of the actors were kinda flat. XOXO It did seem like a documentary...but you could tell by the end that it was scripted. XOXO VERY interesting storyline and premise, but overall, I left the movie...sad. A lovely film. I was capitvated by the role of Tanya. Elena Roth is an exquisite actress. Though unfortunate in her quest for love, she takes what life gives and recoils to make her life better. An honourable trait sometimes never experienced in North America. The need is not as immediate. Recommend to all. [Plot spoiler ahead]: As other reviews have mentioned, some steps of introduction process were omitted from the story. If the character Blake had really been serious about meeting Tanya, he would have flown over to her home to meet and get acquainted with her, her family, and her culture. Likewise, she should not have flown to America first to meet him. She needed a much better idea of what she was getting into, such as his insufferably claustrophobic shoebox apartment. That said, I found this remarkable "little" film to be one of the most difficult to watch without cringing or having feelings of embarrassment and anguish - it is just too realistic. My heart was breaking for Tanya. Blake is a cad in every sense of the word - a completely clueless boor with zero personality. I had to keep telling myself that these are actors and this is a film, but still I found myself absolutely despising Blake and his crude, rude, callous friends. An abrupt, sad ending leaves us wondering what happens to Tanya.
"Russian Bride"
T-Bone
From AMAZON:
"Russian Bride"
By J.Foster (Fond du Lac, WI United States )
April 27, 2008
By T.Dimock (Ventura, CA United States)
Director/producer/writer/cinematographer/editor Natasha Guruleva has made an excellent film that feels too true for comfort. Be sure to watch the "Making of" featurette for real-life resolutions to the actors' lives. Five stars for the movie.