The original Ukrainian version of the film "Bloody Dawn," which was long considered lost, has been discovered in Chernihiv. The discovery was made at the Mykhailo Kotsiubynskyi Literary and Memorial Reserve.
This was announced at the One Street Museum on the eve of the birthday of the famous actor and chansonnier Alexander Vertinsky, who was born on March 20.
This is a film shot in 1955 at the Kyiv Film Studio based on the story "Fata Morgana." Until now, it was believed that the film had survived only in a version with Russian dubbing, and the original Ukrainian soundtrack had been lost.
The discovery is particularly valuable because in the recovered version, Oleksandr Vertinsky himself voices his character in Ukrainian. In the dubbed version, his voice is replaced by another actor, which, according to researchers, significantly changes the perception of the image.
In his memoirs, Vertinsky recalled how, during filming, actress Natalia Uzhviy was surprised by his natural Ukrainian intonations. To which he replied that it was his native language, because he was born in Kyiv.
Researchers expect that the found tape will be digitized, after which viewers will be able to see and hear the film in its original form — with authentic sound and the actor's performance.
Alexander Vertinsky is one of the most prominent figures of his time. He was born in Kyiv, created the image of the "sad Pierrot" and gained fame as a singer, poet and actor. After the revolution, he emigrated, where he also had great success, and later returned to the USSR.
Despite living in Moscow, Vertinsky did not hide his attachment to Ukraine. In his memoirs, he recalled singing Ukrainian songs to his daughters and proudly participating in the filming of films in the Ukrainian language.
The find in Chernihiv opens a new page in the study of the artist's work and may become an important discovery for Ukrainian cultural heritage.
