The Guide (film) should not be confused with Guide (film).
| The Guide | |
| Director: | Oles Sanin |
| Producer: | Maxim Asadchiy Igor Savychenko Oles Sanin |
| Starring: | Stanislav Boklan Jeff Burrell Anton Sviatoslav Greene Oleksandr Kobzar Jamala Iryna Sanina |
| Music: | Alla Zahaikevych |
| Cinematography: | Serhiy Mykhalchuk |
| Editing: | Denys Zakharov |
| Studio: | Pronto Film |
| Distributor: | B&H Film Distribution |
| Runtime: | 122 minutes |
| Country: | Ukraine |
| Language: | Ukrainian Russian English |
| Gross: | ₴2.5 million |
The Guide (Ukrainian: Поводир, Povodyr) is a 2014 Ukrainian drama film directed by Oles Sanin. The film stares Stanislav Boklan, Anton Greene, Jeff Burrell, Iryna Sanina and Jamala. It focuses around a young Peter Shamrock who serves as the guide of a blind bard in Soviet Ukraine. There is a special audiodescripted version for blind people.[1]
The film was produced by Pronto Film with a budget of about ₴16,762,000, with the Ukrainian State Film Agency financing parts. The film would then go on to make ₴16.6 million, although ₴14.1 million was given back to the Ukrainian State Film Agency, making the true amount at around ₴2.5 million.[2] It was selected as the Ukrainian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards,[3] but was not nominated.[4] There was some controversy over the selection of the film in Ukraine regarding the voting process.[5]
Following the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, several cinemas including Regal Cinemas began screenings of The Guide to raise money for relief efforts in Ukraine through the Ukraine Relief Fund.[6] [7] On 13 March 2022, a screening of The Guide in Salem, Massachusetts, was attended by the Governor of Massachusetts, Charlie Baker, and Congressman Seth Moulton. By 17 March 2022, it was screened across 600 cinemas in the United States.[8]
Set during the early 1930s in Soviet Ukraine, American engineer Michael Shamrock arrives in Kharkiv with his ten-year-old son, Peter to help "build socialism". He falls in love with an actress Olga, of whom she has another admirer, Commissar Vladimir. However, Michael gets his hands onto secret documents about a planned mass seizure of food by the Soviets. As a result, he is killed whilst boarding a train. Peter then escapes his father's killers by hiding into the car of another train.
Peter is then saved by a blind bard (kobzar) named Ivan Kocherga. With no other chance to survive in a foreign land, Peter becomes Ivan's guide.[9] Meanwhile, Vladimir dedicates himself to find Peter.
Since its release, The Guide has generated generally favourable reviews.
On IMDb, The Guide has an average rating of 7.7/10.
Following the announcement of The Guide being nominated by the Ukrainian Oscar committee, several individuals left the committee in protest including the head of the Ukrainian Association of Cinematographers, Serhiy Trymbach.[10]
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Odesa International Film Festival[11] | Best Actor | Stanislav Boklan | ||
| Jury Prize for Cinematography | Sergiy Mykhalchuk | ||||
| Grand Prix | Oles Sanin | ||||
| 2014 | Warsaw International Film Festival[12] | Grand Prix | Oles Sanin | ||
| 2015 | Universe Multicultural Film Festival[13] | Grand Prix for the best movie | Oles Sanin |