Against the background of the absence of Hollywood premieres, the decline in the fees of Russian cinemas is intensifying. While it was 44 percent in March (compared to the same period last year), it fell 54 percent in April, according to the propaganda publication “Kommersant”. Moreover, analysts expect an even bigger drop and talk about the risk of closing half of the cinemas.

Russians stopped going to the movies

• According to the weekly statistics, the dynamics of the decline is even higher: for the period from April 25 to 30, the decline in wages was 76 percent compared to the 2021 weekly average.
• The decline in cinema attendance in April was 52%: if 10.65 million spectators came to theaters in April 2021, then in 2022 – 5.06 million. In March, this rate was 49 percent.
• The drop in ticket prices also resulted in a drop in earnings. Before the disappearance of foreign blockbusters, the average ticket price was 318 rubles, and now – 269 rubles. Cinemas have no choice, because the audience will not go to the secondary premieres, and even to the Russians, at the expense of the conditional “Doctor Strange”, which, by the way, Russians will not see – the premiere of the May film was canceled.
• In addition, we must not forget about the general decline in the purchasing power of Russians.

Cinemas are preparing a replacement: very equivalent

Distributors are looking for tapes to show to get out of the situation. Like this, They will show the restored cartoons “Chippolino”, “The Adventures of Pinocchio” and “The Secret of the Third Planet”.

“A lot of work has been done on the cartoons to eliminate image imperfections and errors,” the Central Partnership press service said. Said.

Legendary Cartoons will appear to viewers in much the same form as when they were released decades ago. Thanks to this, modern children will have the opportunity to get acquainted with the richness of the “golden collection”, whose image quality has overshadowed many of its masterpieces for many years, and to see their parents – them. favorite movies in a new way.
– Says Yulia Osetynska, general producer of “Soyuzmultfilm”.

Netizens joke about whether Chippolino’s finale will change and whether the cartoon has so far been considered extremist due to its content that does not fit the ideology of modern Putin’s Russia.

“Bat” and “Blue Hedgehog”: movies renamed in preparation to show pirated copies

Another bit of Spanish shame came from Vladivostok. There, the local Moscow cinema decided to cheat and show illegal copies of “Batman” and “Sonic”, which had recently been released around the world. However, in order not to “burn”, the films were renamed. Yes, it was “Batman”, “Bat” and “Sonic-2 in the movies” – “Blue Hedgehog 2”.

Russians rename movies to show pirated copies / Photo ixbt

Licensed copies of these films have not been released in Russia, and local media have already claimed that “the so-called parallel imports have begun to be made in cinemas.”

TV is not far behind

Meanwhile, the propaganda broadcaster RIA Novosti announced that Iranian films, cartoons and serials were broadcast on Russian television. It’s scary to imagine what they’ll be like, given that it’s a country with total bans and strict rules that have to abide by strict laws of religion and tradition. But Massoud Ahmedwand, head of the cultural mission at Iran’s Russian Embassy, ​​said “these are simple but interesting and vital issues”.

Great acting, rich costumes, good directing, interesting stories – all this will delight the Russian audience,
– Ahmedwand believes.

From our point of view, we can wish the Russians to “pleasantly watch” Iran’s highly intangible cultural product.