Review of the series “Coll-Center”. Russian folk “saw”

April 10, 2020kin and TV shows

Review of the series "Coll-Center". Russian folk "saw"

Streaming services made a revolution in the entertainment industry-it is impossible to argue with this. Yes, their profitability is still in question: duty Netflix has already approached $ 15 billion, this is not even hiding. But during their dominance, online platforms freed directors and scriptwriters from the need to look back at ratings and fees. TV shows no longer need to fight for profitable timewides, and films – for the number of sessions. Here it is – universal equality.

This fashion trend also reached Russia, and almost without late, but changes in a different nature began here. Online cinemas became an alternative to mossy telica with its scrapers, self-censorship and bad reputation among the population under forty. The producers rushed to shoot the "non -format", which they had long dreamed of. So appeared overloaded sex "Casters" , "In the cage" with the swearing Priluchny, topical "House arrest" And, of course, the most relevant series of the year – "Epidemic". By inertia, almost each of these projects then still reached the TV, but already in a trimmed, compromise version. It is clear that these shows were shot primarily for a progressive Internet audience. Well, now the service Premier offers her a postmodern thriller, where motives "Saw" mixed with children's songs of the Soviet era.

The young Muscovite Cyril did not get wrong with life. Firstly, he works as an operator of a call center in an “adult boutique”-and this is with an unfinished medical education behind the shoulders. Secondly, his girlfriend sleeps with their common boss and does not even particularly hide it. Well, thirdly, on his birthday, Cyril, together with colleagues, becomes a captive of some maniacs who call themselves "parental control". Some “mom” and “dad” locked the poor fellow in the mined office and force them to perform absurd, and sometimes extremely cruel tasks – from the round dance naked to cutting off the fingers. At the same time, sadists know all the personal secrets of the employees of the call center and reveal them during the game.

The formula "sinners in a trap" in the eighty years ago invented Agatha Christie in her "Ten Negro". Since then, dozens of films and TV shows have been hidden on its patterns: from comic "Eidues" To the bloody "Hunters for the mind" Or, for example, psychedelic "Cuba". Or the same "saw", especially the second. However, the creators "Call-center" They say that first of all they were guided by another work – "Stay alive".

The creation of Abrams, Lindelof and Kewza Russian project is borrowering the structure: each episode has two storylines, one of which is the memories of one of the heroes. And just like in Lost, these flashbacks turned out to be bright and not very believable. Either by chance, or by the plan of maniacs (this is not completely clear), the Moscow sex shop gathered in his call center the most unlucky people of the country. One was recruited by the Islamic radicals, the other turned out to be an oligarch-paranoik oligarch, the third for the sake of saving her daughter voluntarily surrendered herself into slavery-and so on. In all stories, the leitmotif of lack of freedom is easily read. In fact, each of the participants in a cruel game was a hostage even before he got into the mined office. Someone literally, someone in a figurative: hostage of circumstances, hostage of prejudices, even a hostage of their own body. And, of course, only having gone through painful trials, they can truly free themselves … or not. In general, everything is in classics.

However, the call-center is not too intrusive with its message, because this is primarily an ironic thriller. It is ironic, not comedic. Black humor does not manifest itself in specific gags, but in the absurdity of situations, characters' reactions and the general tone of the narrative. Not all heroes were endowed with a bright past, and therefore almost anecdotal archetypes are adjacent to conditionally worked out personalities in the office. Glamorous fool Jana, her loky girlfriend Sonya (of course, with glasses), an ultra-gatarit and eternally sweaty Vadik, the bald family man Zhenya-everything is like from horror films of the Jinx Casino eighties and nine. Actors perfectly fall into types and acting in the best traditions of the genre. After all, all this is a buffoonery, a motley mixture of American cliches and national color. By the way, the call-center is beautiful with him. The process of execution is decorated under the matinee in kindergarten with all the characteristic attributes: contests, susing educators and Soviet songs, which in the context of what is happening like ever sinisterly.

“Mom” and “dad”, represented by pixel blanks, turned out not as colorful as the famous Billy Doll from the “saw”, but they hold the level. Especially "mother" with her diminutive appeals-they sound both irritating and terribly. However, the disclosure of the essence of "parental control" is openly disappointed. It feels like the creators of the series either began to play with the deconstruction of the genre, or simply came to a standstill and came up with a denouement at the last moment. But in the second option, it is weak – and besides there is a hope that the answers to many questions will appear in the second season.

Although there is a chance that there is no double bottom in the series: “Call-center” often seems smarter than it is actually. If you discard all flirting with the genre and ancient stamps, which many spectators may simply not notice and appreciate, then there will be an ordinary thriller that is very similar to the “saw”. Only here the attractions in it are not so inventive, there is little blood, and the actors are desperately replaying. In addition, a significant part of the plot revolves around a love triangle with the participation of Cyril, his ex and the boss. And if you do not have at least basic sympathy for any of them – but the probability of this is great – the viewing will become much more painful. Of course, you can root for other characters, but they do not have much screen time. And some of them are generally pushed into the background immediately after the flashbacks, like played cards. Yes, and logical holes are a whole car: if it were not for the perfect combination of circumstances, the plan of maniacs from “parental control” could fly to hell many times.

However, with all its shortcomings, the call-center is an outstanding project by the standards of Russian series. And just a confident middle peasant according to world streaming standards. In some places he can enrage, but in general it is perfectly entertained. Moreover, during the quarantine period, it is the most to look at the poor fellow, whose isolation passes much worse.

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