Bitter Harvest (2016 film)
| Bitter Harvest | |
|---|---|
.png) Film poster | |
| Directed by | George Mendeluk |
| Produced by | Ian Ihnatowycz |
| Written by | Richard Bachynsky Hoover |
| Starring |
Max Irons Samantha Barks Barry Pepper Tamer Hassan Lucy Brown Terence Stamp Jack Hollington Ostap Stupka Alexander Pecheritsyia |
| Music by | Benjamin Wallfisch |
| Cinematography | Douglas Milsome |
| Edited by |
Stuart Baird & Lenka Svab |
| Distributed by |
Roadside Attractions B&H Film Distribution Company |
Running time | approx. 2 hours |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $21,000,000 |
Bitter Harvest is an upcoming 2016 romantic-drama film set in Soviet Ukraine in the early 1930s. The film was directed by George Mendeluk and the original story and script was written by Richard Bachynsky Hoover. The film stars Max Irons, Samantha Barks, Barry Pepper, Tamer Hassan and Terence Stamp.[1] It was shot on location in Ukraine. The film has been acquired by Roadside Attractions for a 1st quarter 2017 US release.[2]
Plot
The plot of Bitter Harvest follows two lovers, played by Irons and Barks, struggling to survive the Holodomor Soviet regime forced famine with their Cossack grain farmer families. Inspired by actual events, Bitter Harvest is set at the time of the Soviet famine of 1932–33.[3][4] In view of a standout amongst the most disregarded tragedies of the twentieth Century, it is an intense story of adoration, respect, insubordination and survival as observed through the eyes of two young lovers caught in the ravages of Joseph Stalin's genocidal approaches against Ukraine in the 1930s.[5][6] As Stalin advances the ambitions of the burgeoning Soviet Union, a youthful craftsman named Yuri (Max Irons) fights to survive starvation, detainment and torment to spare his childhood sweetheart Natalka (Samantha Barks) from the Holodomor, the death by-starvation program which ultimately killed millions of Ukrainians. Against this tragic backdrop, Yuri escapes from a Soviet prison and joins the anti-Bolshevik resistance movement as he fights to rejoin with Natalka and proceed with the battle for a free Ukraine.[7][8][9]
Production and cast
Filmed on location in Ukraine, this love story brings to light one of the most devastating chapters of modern Europe. The stellar cast also includes Barry Pepper, Tamer Hassan and Terence Stamp. Director George Mendeluk co-wrote the screenplay with Richard Bachynsky-Hoover based on Bachynsky-Hoover’s original story. The film is produced by Ian Ihnatowycz, Stuart Baird, George Mendeluk, Chad Barager and Jaye Gazeley. Dennis Davidson, Peter D. Graves and William J. Immerman serve as executive producers. Richard Bachynsky-Hoover is executive producer (Ukraine). Roadside will release the film in the U.S. on February 24, 2017. The Executive Producers are Dennis Davidson, Peter D. Graves, and Bill Immerman as well as Richard Bachynsky Hoover being the Executive Producer in Ukraine.[10][9]
Producer Ian Ihnatowycz stated, "Given the importance of the Holodomor, and that few outside Ukraine knew about this man-made famine because it had been covered up by the Soviets, this chapter of history needed to be told in English on the silver screen for the first time in feature film history."[1][10]
Filming
Filming began in Ukraine by November 15, 2013.[9] On February 5, 2014 Variety reported that the shoot had just ended in Kiev.[1] In early 2014, post-production continued at London's Pinewood Studios, using the official James Bond filming tank for under-water filming. Skyfall editor Stuart Baird and SFX teams worked on the film in post production.
See also
References
- 1 2 3 Barraclough, Leo (February 5, 2014). "'White Queen' Star Max Irons Finishes Ukraine Shoot for 'Devil's Harvest'". Variety. Retrieved February 7, 2014.
- ↑ McNary, Dave (August 9, 2016). "Max Irons-Samantha Barks' Ukraine Drama 'Bitter Harvest' Bought by Roadside". Variety. Retrieved September 2, 2016.
- ↑ Jones, Adam (2010). Genocide: A Comprehensive Introduction. Taylor & Francis. p. 194. ISBN 9780415486187.
- ↑ Timothy Snyder. Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin. Basic Books, 2010, pp.50–51. ISBN 0-465-00239-0
- ↑ Andrea Graziosi, "Les Famines Soviétiques de 1931–1933 et le Holodomor Ukrainien.", Cahiers du monde russe et soviétique, 46/3, p. 457
- ↑ Nicolas Werth, "La grande famine ukrainienne de 1932–1933" in Nicolas Werth, La terreur et le désarroi: Staline et son système, Paris, 2007, p. 132. ISBN 2262024626
- ↑ Boriak, Hennadii. Sources for the Study of the << Great Famine>> in Ukraine (Cambridge, Mass 2009)
- ↑ "The famine of 1932–33". Encyclopædia Britannica online. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
The Great Famine (Holodomor) of 1932–33 – a man-made demographic catastrophe unprecedented in peacetime. Of the estimated six to eight million people who died in the Soviet Union, about four to five million were Ukrainians... Its deliberate nature is underscored by the fact that no physical basis for famine existed in Ukraine... Soviet authorities set requisition quotas for Ukraine at an impossibly high level. Brigades of special agents were dispatched to Ukraine to assist in procurement, and homes were routinely searched and foodstuffs confiscated... The rural population was left with insufficient food to feed itself.
- 1 2 3 Mitchell, Wendy (15 November 2013). "Max Irons, Samantha Barks go for Harvest". screendaily.com. Retrieved February 8, 2014.
- 1 2 Francis, Diane (October 14, 2015). "New Movie Reveals Russia's Attempts to Destroy Ukraine". Atlantic Council.