Balabanov`s Morphine shocks spectators at film festival in Greece.

THESSALONIKI, November 22 (Itar-Tass) - The film Morphine by Russian
filmmaker Alexei Balabanov chocked on Saturday spectators at the 50th
international film festival in Thessaloniki.
The film takes spectators back to 1917 - the time of the revolution,
losses and hopes. A personal tragedy of a 23-year-old doctor takes place
against this background. It is based on semi-autobiographical short
stories by Mikhail Bulgakov.
A young Russian doctor called Mikhail Polyakov (Leonid Bichevin)
arrives at a small hospital in a far-away village. Having freshly
graduated from medical school, with little experience, he is the only
doctor in the rural district. He works hard, earning the respect of his
small staff (one paramedic and two nurses).After an allergic reaction to a
diphtheria vaccination, he asks his nurse Anna to give him morphine to
negate the effects. Gradually he slips into addiction.
Balabanov confessed in some interviews that his film is not for mass
spectator, and this was confirmed in Thessaloniki. A female spectator felt
unwell during the film, where scenes of amputation and tracheotomy are
shown very naturalistically.
The film was stopped and restarted after medics arrived. After the
film the shocked audience even forgot to applaud the film makers as it
happens traditionally. Some of them told Tass that they had liked the
film, but said spectators must be warned beforehand about such scenes.
However, writer and painter Dimitris Karavatos told Tass that the film
was "a true masterpiece". He said that he had watched many films at the
festival, but Morphine was the best. "I consider it the best film at this
film festival," he said.
The winners of the film festival in which 15 films take part will be
announced on Sunday.
-0-zhe/