Autumn Marathon (Osennij Marafon)

What does the nature do without us all?

Who sees that snow in winter’s twilight fall?

A question mark.

Who hears the summer thunder’s frightening notes?

A question mark.

Who hails a silver lining yet from far?

A question mark.

And why should waves rock desolate empty boats?

And why should fall a falling star?

A question mark.

Not why, for whom, these wonders are?

What?

I so much wish we had a child.

Why?

He would be as talented as you are.

Talented are them. I’m just translating their verses.

He would so much love you! We would wait for you together.

Alla, you know, I can’t change anything in my life.

Written by Alexander VOLODIN

AUTUMN MARATHON

Directed by Georgy DANELIA

Director of Photography Sergei VRONSKY

Art directors - Levan Shengelia Eleanora Nemecek

Music by Andrei Petrov

Directed by Yuri Kushnerev

Camera B. Kromas, N. Yablonovsky

Production Manager Vitaly Krivonoschenko

A SAD COMEDY

- Morning, you ready? - Just a moment. I’ll tell my wife.

Nina!

We are off jogging.

My goodness, I could sleep one more hour.

Hello!

Hello!

Why are you silent and breathing? Just say mew.

Next time pick it up yourself.

- Taste it, Bill. - Thanks.

- How do you call it? - Khvorost.

“Khvorost”.

Very tasty.

- Nina is a nice cook. - Take it easy, darling…

Sorry, it’s very quiet, I don’t understand.

- I’m talking to him. - She’s talking to me.

Bill, say, if some one is silent and breathing,

why it means that this call is for me?

- Sorry, what? - Why if some one…

- Maybe not to involve Bill… - Sorry, I don’t get you.

- She’s talking to me. - I’m talking to him.

I’m listening to you.

Buzykin, your Alla just waked me up

and asked to tell you to call her right now.

You left some kind of manuscript at her place.

Unfortunately, I can’t do it right now,

I’m overloaded with work.

I see, Nina is around?

OK, I’ll talk to her myself.

- You shouldn’t. - I should.

Bye.

Verigin called from publishing company. Rushes me.

- Is it the same in Denmark? - The same, yes.

Didn’t it seem to you that he had a female voice?

- Who? - Verigin.

He called through his secretary.

You like it? Nina cooked it herself.

Very tasty. Is it jam?

No, this is preserves. Excuse me.

Andrey, she’s angry a little,

Maybe I’d better go or better stay?

- The scandal will be less? - Nope.

She’s just feeling bad.

- Goodbye, Bill. - Goodbye.

From now on Andrey’ll entertain you, I’m leaving.

Nina, just say if we need to buy something.

- I’ll have time after seminar. - OK.

Buy flowers for the secretary.

She’s gone to her job.

Andrey, maybe you also have a job?

Maybe I’m taking your time?

Of course not, not at all.

Bill, I’ve read it.

Everything’s right but there are some inaccuracies.

Here: as far as I remember Dostoyevsky wrote:

“What do you take yourself for, you saucy slut, you green eipie”,

you wrote right - “Green ape”,

he meant “eippie” - this is slang.

Excuse me.

Hello?

- Buzykin, she’s crazy… - Who?

Our typist.

I’ve just called her back and tried to explain her everything,

and very delicately, she sent me to hell

and asked to tell you that you wouldn’t come any more.

What am I to do? Maybe I would come to her?

That's out of the question. Who asked you to meddle?

OK then, bye!

Andrey, I thought that “eippie”…

- is incorrect print. - No, this is correct print.

Sorry, Bill, I gotta go to the institute.

Andrey, I let you go,

But I've got one more small question.

Of course.

Give me a moment.

- Hi. - Hi.

- What's there? - Shershavnikov.

- So what? Why are you hiding? - Don't wanna give hand to the brute.

Why?

Don't you know what he did on the meeting yesterday?

Nope!

He failed Klyuchansky, pushed Semyonov,

and that's why Efimov is gonna be vice-head of department.

- Good day, Vladimir Nikolaevich. - Hi.

- Hey, have you seen Novikov? - No, I've not.

Hi Buzykin,

how is it going?

- If he'll arrive tell him to come to my place. - OK.

- Hello? - Can I talk to Alla Mikhailovna?

- She's not here. They let her home. - Why?

Her heart ached.

Yes!

What's up with you? What's happened?

- Nothing. A pain in my heart. - So let's call a doctor.

- He's already been. - What did he say?

He said to lie down.

- So lie down. - I'm lying.

What did she tell you?

Nothing new.

More exactly?

She said that your family

is very good,

that you lived in harmony hundred and fifty years,

that you're afraid of making her worry or upset.

I know it by myself but when you hear it from a stranger...

- You had to hang up. - That was awful, so I did.

- Is she unfaithful to you? - Who? Varvara?

Your wife.

- Varvara... - Hmm...

I guess, no

Why she sewed on the button with brown thread?

- Where? - On your belly.

Here.

- Indeed. - Well,

take it off.

Well...

- It's time to go home. - No, I need to publishing company

for 5 minutes and that's all.

Good, Andrey Pavlovich, good as always.

I'm glad.

But I'm not!

Why not?

That won't do.

- Why not? - That Simon spoke

with some racist article last week.

All the progressive people is outraged, protests.

So we're gonna advertise and translate him, huh?

Listen, Andrey Pavlovich,

In what condition is your “Broken Moon “?

- In broken. - What do you mean, in broken?

C'mon, it's written down here:

10th, Buzykin, “Broken Moon”, what's the date today?

9th. Tomorrow is the time.

- I won't be in time. - OK.

Will you be in time by 13th?

13th is dead line.

I'll do my best.

I'll work all the night.

You will, you will...

It's better than to wench…

at your age.

What do you mean?

Leningrad is small town, Andrey Pavlovich.

Hello.

- Hello… - Nina, this is me.

I’ll be home a little bit later today, Seems, we have a meeting.

Listen, it's indecent - he’s waiting for you 2 hours.

You promised to take him to Dostoyevsky’s places.

Damn! I plumb forgot it… Tell him, I’m coming!

- Where are you? - I told you, at the meeting.

But your meetings are on Thursday…

I’ll come home and explain. OK then, they’re knocking already.

- Where? AT the meeting? - OK then, later…

- Young man… - Me?!

You forgot your flowers.

Many thanks.

Flowers, validol, corvalol.

I gotta go. Hansen’s waiting for me.

What about the button?

Alla, it doesn’t looks very good. He’s waiting for me 2 hours.

I’ll be quick, you can eat meanwhile.

- Why have you got up? - ‘Cos you’re hungry.

Andrey,

Who does your daughter look like?

Like you or… like her?

Like nobody…

She dropped out of institute.

Doesn’t come to see us.

Her husband is a kind of a blockhead.

I try to communicate with him, but get no response.

You see,

if we had...

He would respect you...