Olympics Basketball Blockbuster! The True Story Behind the Russian Victory Over the American "Dream Team"
On New Year's Eve, next Thursday, to be more precise, there’ll be a major Russian film premiere, a new sports blockbuster, Going Vertical. This is the third joint project of the Rossiya TV channel and Nikita Mikhalkov's Trite studio. I’ve already watched the movie and I’m sure that this film will have a happy release fate. You can watch it with the whole family, it’ll be interesting for both children and parents. The plot is based on real events, and the movie is perfectly made.
Oleg Pakshin will tell more.
Film frames: "I had a dream, to gather the best team, to become the Olympic champions".
Going Vertical is an inspiring story about a dream and a will. A miracle happens in front of the audience. A team is born on the screen, and people can be proud of it and support it wholeheartedly to the point of complete self-giving. Something similar happens in the cinema.
Film frames:
"We must beat the Americans".
"But everyone knows that it’s impossible".
"Not yet, but it’ll be possible soon!"
People have never enjoyed Russian cinema this way. In an hour and a half of screen time, the actors became literally dear. They showed us, Russians, not by our nationality but spirit. The poster reads "action drama," but in fact, it's a human destinies blockbuster.
Vladimir Mashkov, actor: "It'd be nice if each one of us was going vertical, at least a little, barely noticeably, like those great athletes".
Sergey Garmash, actor: "I knew the script and I was expecting it to be a good movie, but I didn’t expect it to be so good. It really is an event".
World cinema struggles in search of such a scenario for years, but Going Vertical was written by life itself 45 years ago.
Film frames:
"Americans will leave you with a full basket".
"Americans have to be beaten by someone someday. I thought it'd be better if it was by us".
Vladimir Mashkov, actor: "I don’t want to sound banal, but it seems to me that this is true. Without our past, there's no present and there’s no future. The sport of high achievements isn’t just a physical training, sometimes it’s an existence incompatible with life at the limit of physical possibilities".
Film frames:
"I have a year to live, maybe a month".
"He won’t last until Moscow".
Through the pain, sweat, and tears, our team was heading to its main match, the 1972 Munich Olympics final, although it was only the coach who truly believed in success.
How did it manage to win over the dream team, as the American team was called back then? A rivalry unprecedented in the heat and tragedy, and the final three seconds which changed the course not only of that match but of the whole history.
A viewer: "Three seconds of this match. It was the most intense and the most incredible moment. Mashkov's fans will remember this forever".
Nikita Mikhalkov, director: "I recommend everyone to see this picture, cry, rest and go again".
At the premiere, Dmitry Guberniev unleashed his feelings long before the final scene.
Dmitry Guberniev, commentator: "Indeed, the film exceeded all my expectations, I began to cry in the twentieth minute. My child can confirm that I roared at those moments when through pain, through tears, the sportsmen showed on the screen these moments of preparation for the greatest event in the Russian sport's history. It was even more powerful than Legend No. 17".
Even the heroes of those events can’t hold back their feelings after watching the film.
Ivan Edeshko, 1972 Olympic basketball champion: "Is it possible to make a film like that? Was it really possible? And this film is a very well-made one. I didn’t expect it myself".
Alzhan Zharmukhamedov, 1972 Olympic basketball champion: "The heart began to beat even stronger than back then".
The filmmakers were trying to achieve this full immersion effect the same way as the golden Olympic team, using completely new techniques. Young people are delighted with the way this heroic Russian movie was made.
Young viewers:
"When you see the end of this match, and there’re these slowdowns, it's phenomenal".
"It’s a good film. And you know, it was the first time that I appreciated the humor in a movie. The jokes were just brilliant".
This movie is more than just a movie. It gives an opportunity to really go vertical, and the whole country felt that nothing is impossible for us. If we believe in our dream, we’ll achieve it.
Oleg Pakshin, Yekaterina Frolova, Kseniya Volkova, Vesti News of the Week.