Ukrainian film “Rock'n'Ball” by young director Dmytro Prykhodko was awarded a special mention during Ukraine’s largest international film festival Molodist on Oct. 30.
A story of a 10-year-old orphan from eastern Ukraine who asks a Polish rock musician to become his father to help him get on a school football team seemed sentimental to some and artificial to others. A combination of football and Ukrainian and Polish protagonists in the movie passed as an obvious bow to the upcoming Euro-2012 championship.
Watching the film on Oct. 27 in Kyiv cinema, viewers particularly liked three episodes, which underpinned Ukraine’s realities ahead of the tournament.
When Polish singer Timon is robbed in Makiyivka, he complains to his girlfriend on the phone: "I’m in the ass, I’m in the Ukraine!" In response, the audience clapped knowingly.
A young Ukrainian lad understands the seriousness of Timon’s predicament and volunteers to help in exchange for…parenthood. Dima’s biggest dream is to get on a football team in his school but to be accepted, he needs to have the father vouch for him. Timon agrees to help if his Ukrainian friend finds him food, money and a job. As he’s looking around, he stumbles upon an abandoned building, which is a former cinema. Symbolizing a miserable situation of the Ukrainian cinema, this scene brought out the second wave of applause.
The third time when the audience cheered was when Dima appears with Shakhtar Donetsk football players onscreen. The part of Dima was played byOlexiy Minko from Berdyansk who was awarded special mention of the management of the festival as a best young actor despite the movie did not take part in the main competition.
Refuting parallels with Euro-2012 and its promotion in the film, director Prykhodko said he conceived the idea independently.
Now, however, he said he would use Euro 2012 as a promoting opportunity for his work. Ukrainian football drama “Rock’n’Ball” will be demonstrated in cinemas across Ukraine, Poland and some other European countries. A televised premiere of the movie will take place on TRK Ukraina channel later this year.
A trailer for Ukrainian movie Rock’n’Ball
