Hastily acquainting children with the most popular theory in the twentieth century, Uncle Albert gives them a toy house, which is inhabited by puppets, headed by a wooden Nutcracker. However, for viewers who are familiar with Tales of Hoffman or Tchaikovsky's ballet, this is not news. News is that the enemies of the Nutcracker (in the movie he is called Al C - seemingly from the Nutcracker, but in Russia it gives rise to associations with Nikita Sergeyevich) - do not click, and krysolyudi, much like the Wehrmacht. Reich headed rat king-Infante with the appearance and habits of Andy Warhol (John Turturro, in the Russian dubbing - Philip) and his witch-mother (Frances De La Tour, in the Russian dubbing - Alla Pugacheva). The old witch has imposed spell on the boy-prince, turning him into a wooden doll. Like Einstein, some of their main concerns expressed by singing rats.

Angry rodent opposes heroic, but a scattered dissident underground. With the help of Mary's Nutcracker is transformed back into a prince, defeats the rats free subjects, and during this time the girl's parents, apparently still have time to go to the reception to the "charlatan" because it no longer accuse Mary of lies and are willing to listen to her story about exciting adventures in alternative worlds. That's the whole story, narrated in the film great detail and with some sort of chore-heavy tone.

The main question that arises after viewing: whom all this is addressed? Children of primary school age? But why should they, for the most part, thank God, are still poorly represent what fascism is, that, in the words of one of the Americans, "Christmas Holocaust"?

Adults know about fascism on sources far more convincing. Besides, surely, to think: what relation to the totalitarian mind is Andy Warhol, in particular, and pop culture in general - that there is a culture that was born just a democratization of all aspects of life? I fear, by the way that the dead shark in an aquarium at the residence of the king rat in the majority of viewers will not association with the hated director Damien Hirst, but with recent events in Egypt.

In an interview with Izvestia, Andrei Konchalovsky said that all these intellectual speculations of his care in the least. The main thing that the film evokes emotions. But any emotion here, unfortunately, gags hard and hopeless dreariness. In addition, it is difficult to feel any sense in a situation where the director tells the long and tedious that it in this life do not like, and no hint there that still cute. Even a symbol of good Snow Fairy (again Vysotsky) somehow make up and her hair exactly how to play "Dead Man's Bluff," the waitress Renata Litvinova, and much more reminiscent of a worker service sector than the sorceress.

Of course, the picture appears when Konchalovsky was first conceived this scenario, some totalitarian allusions would be enough to film in the USSR or put on a shelf, or acquired cult status. But since the last forty years. Soviet Union no longer exists. "The Nutcracker ..." filmed in English and, therefore, is addressed and people living outside the sixth of the planet.

The reaction of American audiences was sharp and extremely nekomplimentarnoy. "The Nutcracker and the Rat King 3D" could easily qualify as the most ridiculous idea in the history of cinema - wrote one of the most influential film critics Roger Ebert of the world. - There was only one opportunity to make this movie even worse - to release the picture in 3D. And the authors do not neglect it. "Fees in the U.S. totaled 159.5 thousand dollars (roughly collects arthouse film in Russian). For painting with a budget of 90 million is tragically small.

Powerful budget Nutcracker ...", most of whom were injection Vnesheconombank, added fuel to the fire a long-standing debate: Is it worth spending so much money, if the Russian market is not technically fit like colossi digest (ie, "beat off" costs). The question is really relevant. But should nevertheless bear in mind that regardless of the artistic result of large Russian projects, firstly, create jobs, and secondly, upload Staged workshop objectives that put our film industry to a higher level. "The Nutcracker ..." - Completely foreign production. Consequently, considerable millions went on to develop a strange industry. And pre-movie title that Russia represents a production of Great Britain and Hungary, certainly can be qualified as the most bizarre in the history of cinema.