1. My Perestroika

2. a
summary

3. My Perestroika follows the lives of
five former schoolmates who grew
up in the last years of the USSR,
documenting how they have adjusted
to the differences in life
in post-Soviet Russia.

4. The film focuses on the story of the
couple Borya and Lyuba, two history
teachers with very different
backgrounds.

5. Lyuba
Borya
a conformist who would salute the TV when
the Soviet hymn played
a Jew who preferred to subvert the system
whenever possible.

6. But it also examines
the lives and opinions
of three former classmates:

7. Olga
Ruslan
Andrei

8. . . . and these three classmates offer their own
perspectives, giving depth and contrast to the
view of post-Soviet Russia presented by the film.

9. a single mother and works
for a company that rents
out billiard tables
a famous Russian punk rock
musician who now plays in
the metro for money
an entrepreneur in new
Russian capitalism who
sells French dress shirts

10. central message
True societal change is difficult to achieve.

11. It's like cleaning your room.
Mostly you just put things away, leaving the
general layout of the room untouched. It is only
when you sort through and evaluate the
accumulation of stuff in your room, labeling
things “used” “might use” and “never use” and
dusting in the farthest corners, that any true
change occurs.
It is important to clean your room like this
sometimes, even though your mother usually
can't tell the difference.

12. My Perestroika shows
the importance of realizing the
difference between
perceived
societal change and
reality.

13. how effective was the
film in communicating
its message?

14. The absence of any sort of
narrative voice allowed for
both the interviews and the
old footage to speak for
themselves.

15. There was no explanation or
external guidance for how
to interpret the film.

16. Instead, it allowed
the listener to simply
absorb
and
develop their own opinion.

17. how did the
filmmakers want
the audience to
respond?

18. The filmmakers wanted
the audience to laugh,
but understand the
seriousness as well.

19. The thoughtful yet good natured and
humorous views of the interviewees
on both their own experiences and
the future of their country
let the audience to enjoy
all the film instead of
drowning in the
seriousness
of the topic.

20. the role of the
individual
in the
modern world

21. The individuals in My Perestroika are not famous.

22. However, the film shows that the
role of the individual,
even one who lives
a normal, simple life,
can be affected by
and in turn
affect the world.

23. It shows how important the give and take of the
relationship between the modern world and the
individual is.

24. It shows that
how each individual
conducts their life
lends something to
the overall perception
of a society.

25. questions

26. Where are the interviewees now?
Have their lives changed anymore?

27. I wish there would have been
more elaboration on what
they think the future of
Russia is going to be like.

28. conclusion
My Perestroika illustrates the importance
of recognizing the difference between
perceived societal change and reality and
the importance of the individual in this
process.