Film producer Sergei Chliyants has defended crime movies against critics who accuse the genre of romanticizing criminal behavior, stating that cinema does not harm society. Speaking to Russian news outlet NSN, the director and producer rejected claims that crime-focused stories exert a negative influence on public morality.
Chliyants argued that international cinema features many excellent films in which criminal characters escape punishment without corrupting society. He cited successful works from world cinema as examples, noting that filmmakers around the world produce crime movies with great success and that such themes do not make the films any worse.
The producer added that it felt awkward to even debate the subject. He stressed that filmmakers do not always need to tell fairy tales about people living exclusively between good and evil, vice and virtue, maintaining that crime-themed movies do not change society for the worse.
Cult crime films and Bumer
Chliyants is widely known for his work on cult Russian projects, including the 2003 film Bumer and the 2006 drama Zhivoy. Directed by Pyotr Buslov, Bumer follows four friends drawn into criminal conflict who attempt to escape Moscow in a BMW. The movie became a major commercial hit and a landmark entry in post-Soviet Russian crime cinema.
His 2006 film Zhivoy, directed by Aleksandr Veledinsky, explored the psychological struggles of a veteran returning from military combat. Both titles solidified Chliyants's reputation as a prominent figure in contemporary Russian film production.
Audience interest in crime stories
The discussion around crime cinema follows earlier comments by Russian actor Mikhail Porechenkov regarding public interest in crime-themed films. Porechenkov previously addressed the enduring popularity of the genre among domestic audiences.
According to Porechenkov, viewers are drawn to crime narratives because the main characters usually find themselves on the verge of a difficult moral choice, creating compelling drama that resonates with audiences.
