No Russian can say that they like the way Russians are portrayed in foreign movies. Sometimes it may be funny, sometimes embarrassing, and sometimes even offensive but almost never realistic. If you are learning Russian and are into Russian culture at least a little bit, you also may have noticed those blooming stereotypes. Let’s find out today what Russians hate most about that.
Russian villain wearing shapka ushanka
The most typical Russian that appears in many Hollywood movies is a middle-aged man, wearing shuba (fur coat) and shapka-ushanka. He is most likely drinking vodka, when he is not busy torturing someone on the screen and Kalashnikov gun is his best friend. This stereotypical Russian is appearing in many movies and to be honest, all Russians are very tired of that one. And not just because this man is always 100% villain, but also because you’ll never find such a character inside Russia. You can travel to Russia to make sure such guys don’t exist.
All Slavic people are called Russians
Second annoying thing is that any Slavic person that appears in a movie is automatically called Russian. In popular movies it doesn’t matter if the person comes from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus or even Poland — Russian it is. Especially often that happens if you see a girl on the screen. While some people just find it a bit annoying, some even may find this offensive.
Something weird is written and said
If a person in a foreign movie starts speaking Russian, it usually sounds bad. Movie makers most often don’t put much attention in such details, so at best you get an English-speaking actor with a terrible accent who certainly doesn’t understand what he or she is reading and putting accents in the wrong place. At worst, you just hear something that should remind you of Russian. When it comes to written text, things may get even worse. Probably every Russian know this passport from “The Bourne Identity”. Ащма Лштшфум is just a mixture of random letters, and there is no way it can be read as Foma Kiniaev.
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