Analysis of Little Vera PDF

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Analysis of Russian film Little Vera. ...

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Joshua Farley 2/20/2018

Analysis of Nonconformance to Society in Little Vera

Little Vera explores a variety of themes, from teenage rebellion to the truths of Soviet society to the broken home. Vera, discontent with both home life and the oppressive society she perceives around her, always finds her way to escape from reality, even if just for a short time. This escaping from reality clouds each passing day in her life and, despite her parents’ wishes and desires, she has plans of her own that she is determined to follow to the end. This film shows an outlook on life from the perception of a disgruntled teenager living in the wilderness outside of Moscow. It is a very different place from the Russia we are accustomed to seeing in film and this film in particular does an excellent job at showing what life was truly like behind the iron curtain. In this analysis, the themes of nonconformance and rebellion will be explored in relation to Little Vera and compared with modern attitudes towards societal expectations in the United States. One of the first rebellious aspects to be noticed in this film is Vera’s appearance. She doesn’t look like your typical Soviet teenager and dresses in a very peculiar style in comparison. More specifically, she dresses and puts on makeup in a similar fashion as her western idols at the time and listens to rock ‘n roll music also likely inspired by western tradition. As Roger Ebert states in his 1989 analysis of the film, “Not surprisingly, Vera seeks to escape from this life, and she leaves the apartment with relief, dressed in a mini-skirt, to hang out with a group of nonconformist teenagers who like to listen to rock 'n' roll and bait the authorities.”1 This is a typical case that can be recognized even by American viewers who are used to hearing rock ‘n roll be regarded as “the devil’s music” and seeing such physical appearances as promiscuous.

Joshua Farley 2/20/2018

Vera, just having finished school, is more interested in partying, smoking, drinking, and hanging out with her friends than furthering her education and enrolling in the university per her parents’ wishes. Her disillusioned mother and her alcoholic father, rather than attempting to console her and guide her towards the right path, often take to yelling and screaming at her until she runs away in a fit of rebellion. This leads to her finding other lovers to fill the void of loneliness in her life and ultimately leads to her pursuing marriage with a fellow named Sergei. Although her parents don’t want her to marry at all, if she were to marry they would rather she go for another gentleman named Andrey who was just sent off to naval camp. Upon his return, he corners Vera in a stairwell and attempts to force himself on her, only to be rejected with physical violence. This is a side of Andrey that the parents never see and, consequently, never understand. From the perspective of the American viewer, this film is very relatable as it describes a stage in life that the majority of us go through at some point, be it during our teenage years or after high school or even in a mid-life crisis situation. Society always place its expectations on us without asking our opinion or considering our views towards life. These societal expectations are more often than not imposed on us by parents and authority figures in an attempt to make us conform to the society we live as. During an iconic part of the movie, Vera and Sergei are on the beach when he asks her about her goals in life. She replies sarcastically that, in this nation (i.e. the Soviet Union), there is only one goal: communism. This digs beneath the surface and illustrates the oppressive feeling society has pressured on the youth of the generation. Be it in the Soviet Union or in the United States, nonconformance is a trait that leads some to failure and others to greatness. Oftentimes it is exactly what people need to carry out the realization of their deepest desires, and at other times it steers people off the right path and leads to self-destruction, as was the case for little Vera. Ultimately, her desire to follow her own path led to her attempted

Joshua Farley 2/20/2018

suicide and the loss of her dearest loved ones. This movie isn’t like a Hollywood release where there is always a small glimmer of hop waiting to make its mark and result in the happy ending we expect. Rather, Little Vera maintains the misery of the situation all the way to the tragic end.

Bibliography: 1) Ebert, Roger. “Little Vera Movie Review & Film Summary (1989).” RogerEbert.com, Gorky Film Studios, 14 June 1989, www.rogerebert.com/reviews/little-vera-1989. 2) Stone, Joanna. “Little Vera Provides Glimpse of Typical Soviet Home Life.” The Tech, 9

May 1989, tech.mit.edu/V109/N24/vera.24a.html....