First off, I really liked this film. I thought it was clever and funny, as well as creating likeable characters that still have their flaws. I think a lot of movies create two kinds of characters that are utterly predictable. The protagonist is typically flawless or flawed in ways that they overcome. The antagonist is a despicable character who hardly has any redeeming qualities. This oftentimes creates a bland and boring movie. Sometimes the movie is cute or inspiring, but often it is run of the mill.
The three women we are introduced to at the beginning of the film are definitely different. First we have Katya, a motivated young lady who wants to get into college to study chemistry. Next, Lyudmila, who wants to "get lucky" in Moscow and marry a well to do young professional. Finally we have Antonina, who seems to just want happiness. Katya fails her test to get into college, but comes back determined to pass the test the next time. Her plan stalls when Lyudmila is able to convince her to go along with a scheme to meet prominent young men. I was surprised that Katya went along with this scheme. In most other parts of the movie she seems independent and able to do things on her own, without the help of dishonesty or scheming. The scheme works and even though Katya wants to tell Rudolph about her true position in life, she does not. Rudolph portrayed originally as a man on the rise while still maintaining a healthy family life, turns out to be more interested in the connections Katya could potentially make for him. The relationship falls apart and Katya moves on as a single mother.
The second half of the film shows Katya as a prominent factory director, a true example of her ability to get things done on her own. She has her own apartment and appears to have raised her daughter pretty darn well. Then, we see another surprising insight into Katya's life. She is seeing a married man. Katya, once again, does not live up to her strong Russian woman appearance. She clearly has her flaws in addition to her avid determination. After meeting Gosha, I again thought she appeared weaker than I thought she was. She lets him say chauvinistic things and lets him believe he is going to be the breadwinner. Her modesty was not the surprising part. The surprising part was the willingness she showed to let Gosha yell at her in front of Alexandra and make ultimatums.
Gosha and Katya's romance is believable to me. Katya is not looking for someone else to look after. She needed a man that did not need to be watched or looked after. Gosha shows that he can do pretty well for himself in a multitude of situations. He is a hard working man who does not need to use people (as Rudolph appeared to want to do). I did not expect Katya to let Gosha get away with chauvinist comments, but I think this was to keep quiet her superior status and income.
One of the most intriguing characters is Antonina. She seems to be the largest bit of propaganda in the film. We do not get that much insight into her life, but maybe that is the way she is supposed to be portrayed. She comes to the city looking for happiness. She is not looking for advancement or to latch onto a wealthy family. She looks for happiness and she finds it. She is the only character to stay with her love interest the entire film and is consistently turned to for support. Her husband originally portrayed as rather simple who ultimately turns out to save the day for Katya.
I may be looking too far into the potentially chauvinistic characteristics of this film, but they are there. They may not be the main focus, but I think it is hard to deny they exist.
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I have to agree that Katya appears to have done an admirable job in bringing up Sasha all on her own. But did you notice that Sasha's sympathetic and good qualities don't really emerge until Gosha hits the scene? To me she seems a bit spoiled (and kind of sour) when we first encounter her--almost as if she is taking her hard-working and successful mother for granted. (Consider, for example, how it's Gosha who gets her to stop standing around in the kitchen and start helping her mother.) And Katya seems to have selflessly taken on so much responsibility for the family that she may have ironically hindered Sasha's growth a bit. At least that's what I think I see--I'd be interested in hearing whether you or others disagree.
I do agree with you that Katya may be appearing to cede more authority to Gosha than is actually the case. One senses that she will not be afraid to raise her voice at him again, even if it makes him angry, so long as she feels that he's done something incorrectly. Ironically, I think their ability to argue (rather than simply fight) is one of the potentially strong aspects of their relationship. In the end, both cave in a bit while also maintaining a substantial portion of their strength.
In tonight's reading you'll see that Anna Lawton has an interesting take on what the three girls represent--and I think you'll agree with what she says with regard to Antonina. The shot of her and Kolya walking to work that morning amongst the high-rise apartments--both beaming brightly, wearing their overalls and carrying their lunchboxes--comes straight out of a late Socialist Realist painting.
But note that while Antonina's life seems the steadiest, I think we're left with no question that Katerina is the one to ulimately win "the Moscow lottery."
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