4-star movie: The Overcoat

[carbonel]

The Overcoat ("Shinel")
Director: Aleksey Batalov
1959

This is the story of a Russian clerk who, at the end of his career, scrimps and saves to buy a warm overcoat, only to have it stolen from him shortly after he acquires it. It's apparently a faithful adaptation of the Gogol story it's based on. I had to go back and watch the last section of the movie, because what I thought was a dying hallucination turned out to be a genuine haunting.

I'm thankful to the interlibrary loan system for finding me a copy of this movie on VHS. I had to go outside the MNLink system to the national system.

Comments

[biblio-tech.livejournal.com]

I'll have to remember that we don't have to stay within the HCLIB system. I have 2 movies on my list and am sure the R has a dozen (that aren't in the local system).

[carbonel]

While the ILL website appeared to allow me to go outside MNLink (which is what I assume you meant rather than HCLIB), it didn't actually bring up the movie. I ended up using the chat function, and the nice person at the other end made it happen.

As far as I can tell, if it's in WorldCat, it's available, though it may take time.

[biblio-tech.livejournal.com]

And R will probably want to watch The Overcoat. We both read the story last year. Also, The Nose...wonder if there's a movie of that?!

[carbonel]

The Overcoat is available, but only in VHS. Do you have -- or have availability to -- such retro technology?

Wikipedia says there is no movie of The Nose, but there is an opera by Dmitri Shostakovich. Not sure if that's sufficient consolation.