| The Dog in the Manger | |
| Director: | Yan Frid |
| Starring: | Margarita Terekhova Mikhail Boyarsky Igor Dmitriev |
| Music: | Gennady Gladkov |
| Cinematography: | Evgeniy Shapiro |
| Studio: | Lenfilm |
| Runtime: | 129 minutes |
| Country: | Soviet Union |
| Language: | Russian |
The Dog in the Manger (Russian: Собака на сене|Sobaka na sene) is a 1978 Soviet musical-comedy film directed by Yan Frid based on the eponymous 1618 play by Lope de Vega.[1]
Teodoro, secretary of the Countess Diana de Belflère, is in love with the maid Marcella. The lady suddenly feels jealousy awakening in her as she watches the development of their romance. But conventions and burden of prejudice have strong power over the independent and self-willed Diana. She, who teases her noble fiancées, can not go so low as to confess her love to an uncultivated servant. Teodoro has no choice - he has to leave Diana's house and go to seek happiness in some other place although the souls of lovers belong to each other. Then his servant Tristan, a wily and witty scoundrel comes to the rescue. And Teodoro suddenly turns out to be an aristocratic nobleman, not inferior in his ancestry and wealth to Diana.
Initially, Oleg Yankovsky and Oleg Dahl auditioned for the role of Teodoro, and Mikhail Boyarsky was to play the role of the Marquis of Ricardo, which eventually was played Nikolai Karachentsov.[3]
The film was shot in Livadia Palace, its gardens and in Lenfilm pavilions.[4] [5]