April 08, 2021

"The Silver Skates" on the Silver Screen


"The Silver Skates" on the Silver Screen
Ice rink on St. Petersburg's Palace Square; they definitely don't do this every year –maybe to make way for the gigantic New Year's tree. Wikimedia Commons user Pot Noodle.

Add The Silver Skates to your must-watch list. Soon, Netflix subscribers will be able to watch the 2020 Russian film in multiple languages.

The Silver Skates is a delightful skate through St. Petersburg at the turn of the twentieth century. Most of the film takes place on an iced-over Neva River. The action centers on a group of young Marxist pickpockets who deploy the physics of skating to steal from wealthy customers at the on-ice market.

The Silver Skates features gorgeous views of St. Petersburg, the quaintness of nineteenth-century material culture, and a love story that crosses socioeconomic classes. Its rather simple storyline can be forgiven for the allure of its cinematography and the charm of its near-constant ice skating.

St. Petersburg locations featured include Peter and Paul Fortress, St. Michael's Castle, Vitebsky railway station, Stieglitz Museum of Applied Arts, Yusupov Palace, Marble Palace, Sheremetyev Palace, and the House of Scientists – which has one of the most stunning staircases in the world.

Netflix picked up the film in late March. You will not find it in your Netflix queue yet, but check out the trailer while you wait for it to drop.

Nineteenth-century ice skates
Try skating on these bad boys. | The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Wikimedia Commons

 

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