Moscow on the Hudson
![Watch film Moscow on the Hudson — Moscow on the Hudson (1984) Original Trailer [FHD]](https://www.acmodasi.in/amdb/images/posters/j/5/MvQ1Xu4x6YvQ.webp)
Short description
A saxophonist with a Soviet circus orchestra defects while the troupe is on tour in the United States. Vladimir Ivanoff, who never planned to leave, slips away inside a New York department store, while the friend who had long dreamed of escaping stays behind. Vladimir finds shelter with a black security guard, meets a Cuban lawyer and an Italian saleswoman, and begins building a new life, searching for work as a musician while coming to terms with what he has left behind.
Paul Mazursky directed, produced and co-wrote the film with Leon Capetanos. It followed An Unmarried Woman in his filmography and came before Down and Out in Beverly Hills. Robin Williams plays Vladimir, with María Conchita Alonso as Lucia, Cleavant Derricks as Lionel, Alejandro Rey as Orlando and Savely Kramarov as a KGB agent.
The film was released in April 1984 and took about 25 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds a critics' rating of 6.8/10 from 77 reviews, while on TMDB it has 6.3/10 from 232 votes.
What's left behind the scenes
- The director and one of the screenwriters, Paul Mazursky, later said that the plot of the film was inspired by details of his family history. His grandfather, originally from Kyiv, once fought in the Russian army, but one day fled the Tsarist regime and reached America by sea. During the voyage, he met a girl who later became the director's grandmother.
- Scenes set in the USSR were filmed in Munich, Germany. On the grounds of «Bavaria Studios» there was a large set depicting a street in an Eastern European city, and the filmmakers were allowed to set up any decorations they wanted. This street was first built for the filming of Ingmar Bergman's (1918-2007) film «The Serpent's Egg» (1977).
- For several months, Robin Williams studied the saxophone and, according to his music teacher, reached a level usually achieved in two years.
- Preparing for the filming for a year, director Paul Mazursky (1930-2014) spoke with Russians living in the United States, as well as with those who still lived in the USSR, particularly in Kyiv, Moscow and Leningrad.
- Preparing for the role took Robin Williams (1951-2014) almost a year. Throughout this time, the actor studied Soviet customs and learned Russian. It is claimed that he dedicated 5 hours a day to language lessons and learned to speak Russian in a month. By the start of filming, he was already quite fluent in Russian and could even hold a conversation. He was coached by an actor from the USSR named David.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
