2014 Film Olympics: From Russia with love
Posted Friday, February 7, 2014 at 3:41 PM Central
Last updated Friday, February 7, 2014 at 6:01 PM Central
by John Couture
You can just make out those familiar chords echoing through the mountains. It's that time again. The Olympics are back and this year it truly is a social media extravaganza thanks to the hashtag #SochiProblems that has gone viral on Twitter.
Yep, social media has officially arrived at the Olympics. Honestly though, Sochi only has itself to blame. In an effort to connect with the digital generation, this is the first Olympics in which the official logo will incorporate a web url. No really, check out the logo below.
So, for better or worse, we are destined to be inundated with jokes about shoddy construction, condom shortages (the Sochi Olympics will only have 100,000 condoms, down from the 150,000 free condoms from London) and death squads tasked with hunting wild dogs over the next couple of weeks.
Thankfully, we have a cure from all of that craziness. Well, not so much a cure as a brief respite from your twitter feed.
Once again, we will be honoring the Olympics and film. You may recall that we did something similar for London a couple of years ago. But this time, there's SNOW! Did I mention that I enjoy the Winter Olympics more than the Summer Olympics? I'm pretty sure I did.
So, for the next fortnight or so, we will be honoring everything that is awesome about the Winter Olympics. Oh, and maybe highlight a Sochi Problem or two. It's hard to resist, no?
First up though is what is quickly becoming a tradition and that's to honor the host of the Olympics. It's going to be weird given that Sochi is 10 hours ahead of me here in Nashville. So, we might run into some time travel issues. Hmm, maybe we'll feature that in one of these things.
For now though, it's all about Sochi, well actually Russia because let's face it, I couldn't name you a single Sochi film. Just to refresh, I will name a gold, silver and bronze winner in each category each day and then tally up the medal counts by studio. In case you forgot, MGM and Universal took home the top honors in London. Will they continue their mastery or will a new studio step up and make a name for itself?
Without further ado, here are the medal winners for films set in Russia or the former Soviet Union.
BRONZE
Right out of the gate, we have ourselves a little upset. I'm pretty sure that when you think of Russian films, Anastasia doesn't automatically come to mind. That's too bad. This animated film features some top notch voice work by John Cusack and Meg Ryan and great animation. It also touches upon some of the dark Russian history with its Czars and the violent end to their reign, but yet in a light-hearted animated film with songs. It's one of my guilty pleasures and one of my top animated films of all time. When I think Russia, I immediately think of this one.
SILVER
Another film a bit off the beaten path is this great parody of the cold war and the United States' spy services. Spies Like Us features two comic geniuses at the top of their game in Chevy Chase and Dan Aykroyd. It's hard to call any Dan Aykroyd film under appreciated, but this one might it. I grew up on this film and it still holds up today. A solid effort that is good enough for the silver medal.
GOLD
Is there a better film out there that showcases the height of the Cold War as seeb in sports better than Rocky IV? No, there is not. And yes, I know that the Olympics are a truly global event, but when you're talking about films set in Russia, it's hard to find many that aren't set in the middle of this bilateral standoff. And let's not forget how amazing this film is. If there's a film that truly encompasses the passion and commitment to training that is necessary to become an Olympic athlete, Rocky IV is it. For that reason, it wins the gold medal.
So, how did I do? Am I still knocking off the rust? I know that many of you will probably point out Doctor Zhivago as a film that I overlooked and the gripe is certainly fair. Ultimately, I decided to go in a different direction, but it could have easily found itself on the medal stand.
Make sure you check back tomorrow when I get lost in time.