''Formula of Love'' () is a 1984 Soviet romantic

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by

Mark Zakharov Mark Anatolyevich Zakharov (; 13 October 1933 – 28 September 2019) was a Soviet and Russian stage and film director, screenwriter and pedagogue best known for his fantasy parable movies. He was named People's Artist of the USSR in 1991. Zakharo ...

, from a screenplay by Grigori Gorin. It is loosely based on the story "Count Cagliostro" by Aleksey Tolstoy.

Plot

In 1780, after a short fraudulent tour in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

, the famous adventurer, "magician" and "master of secret forces" Count Cagliostro was forced to hide from the chase sent by the almighty

Prince Potemkin Prince Grigory Aleksandrovich Potemkin-Tauricheski (A number of dates as late as 1742 have been found on record; the veracity of any one is unlikely to be proved. This is his "official" birth-date as given on his tombstone.) was a Russian mi ...

. At the same time, Cagliostro is trying to find the "formula" for the only feeling that he is still unable to evoke in human hearts — love. A young landowner Alexey Fedyashev lives in the Russian countryside near

Smolensk Smolensk is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest cities in Russia. It has been a regional capital for most of ...

. He cannot find a chosen one and secretly dreams of an unattainable ideal. Alexey is in love with the statue standing in the garden park, and dreams of reviving it — "as the

Greek gods In ancient Greece, deities were regarded as immortal, anthropomorphic, and powerful. They were conceived of as individual persons, rather than abstract concepts or notions, and were described as being similar to humans in appearance, albeit larg ...

once breathed life into the stone

Galatea Galatea is an ancient Greek name meaning "she who is milk-white". Galatea, Galathea or Gallathea may refer to: In mythology * Galatea, three different mythological figures from Greek mythology In the arts * '' Aci, Galatea e Polifemo'', ca ...

." Having accidentally learned that Cagliostro is located near his estate, Alexey finds the count and asks for help. The visit of foreign guests causes a stir in the quiet estate.

Cast

Nodar Mgaloblishvili Nodar Mgaloblishvili (, ka, ნოდარ მგალობლიშვილი, July 15, 1931 in Tbilisi, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union – March 26, 2019 in Tbilisi) was a Soviet Union, Soviet and Georgian people, Georgian theatrical and cine ...

as Count Giuseppe Cagliostro (voiced by

Armen Dzhigarkhanyan Armen Borisi Dzhigarkhanyan (3 October 193514 November 2020) was a Soviet Union, Soviet, Armenian, and Russian actor. Born and raised in Yerevan, Dzhigarkhanyan started acting in the academic and Russian theaters of the city, before moving to Mos ...

) * Yelena Valyushkina as Maria Ivanovna * Aleksandr Mikhailov as Aleksei Alekseyevich Fedyashev * as Lorenza *

Aleksandr Abdulov Aleksandr Gavrilovich AbdulovАбдулов Г. Д.
Ферганский г� ...

as Jacob *

Semyon Farada Semyon Lvovich Ferdman PAR, better known by his stage name Semyon Farada (, December 31, 1933, Nikolskoye village of Moscow Oblast, USSR – August 20, 2009, in Moscow) was a Soviet and Russian stage and film actor. Early life Ferdman was born ...

as Margadon (singing voice by

Gennady Gladkov Gennady Igorevich Gladkov (; 18 February 1935 – 16 October 2023) was a Soviet and Russian composer. He composed music for some of the most famous Soviet movies and cartoons, most notably ''The Bremen Town Musicians (1969 film), The Bremen Town ...

) *

Tatyana Pelttser Tatyana Ivanovna Pelttser (; ; June 6, 1904 in Moscow – July 16, 1992 in Moscow), was a Soviet and Russian stage and film actress. People's Artist of the USSR (1972). Biography Tatyana Ivanovna Pelttser (or Peltzer) born into the family ...

as Fedosya Ivanovna * Aleksandra Zakharova as Fimka *

Leonid Bronevoy Leonid Sergeyevich Bronevoy (December 17, 1928December 9, 2017, born Leonid Solomonovich Bronevoy) was a Soviet and Russian actor. Though primarily a stage actor in the Lenkom Theatre, Bronevoy also made occasional appearances in films. He was ...

as Doctor *

Nikolay Skorobogatov Nikolay Arkadevich Skorobogatov (; December 19, 1923, Vyazma, Vyazemsky Uyezd, Smolensk Governorate — June 10, 1987, Moscow) was a Soviet film and theater actor. Biography Born in the family of the railway. After graduating from high school, ...

as Stepan Stepanovich

Filming

Grigory Gorin saw

Oleg Yankovsky Oleg Ivanovich Yankovsky (; 23 February 1944 – 20 May 2009) was a Soviet Union, Soviet and Russian actor who excelled in psychologically sophisticated roles of modern intellectuals. In 1991, he became, together with , the last person to be nam ...

in the role of Cagliostro, but the artist refused — he did not want to get involved with mysticism. "Praskovya Tulupova" is a marble copy of the statue "Odalisque (Sulamitide)" by the Italian sculptor Pasquale Romanelli. The film was shot in the

Moscow region Moscow Oblast (, , informally known as , ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). With a population of 8,524,665 (Russian Census (2021), 2021 Census) living in an area of , it is one of the most densely populate ...

Stupinsky District Stupinsky District () is an administrativeLaw #11/2013-OZ and municipalLaw #68/2005-OZ district (raion), one of the thirty-six in Moscow Oblast, Russia. It is located in the south of the oblast. The area of the district is . Its administrative cen ...

and Domodedovsky District. According to Yelena Valyushkina, "It was a wonderful, fun time." The film crew presented the announcement of the new film in the New Year's edition of

Kinopanorama Kinopanorama is a three-lens, three-film widescreen film format. Although Kinopanorama was initially known as ''Panorama'' (, ''panoramnyy film'') in the Soviet Union the name was later revised to include its current name prior to the premiere scr ...

in 1984.

Soundtrack

Legacy

"Formula of Love" is spoken of as one of the Soviet " quote films". In particular, the "Neapolitan Song" became very popular. The music and words of this pseudo-Italian

aria In music, an aria (, ; : , ; ''arias'' in common usage; diminutive form: arietta, ; : ariette; in English simply air (music), air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrument (music), instrumental or orchestral accompan ...

were composed by

. According to Alexander Abdulov, he received letters asking him to send notes and lyrics of this "abracadabra", including from some military units.TV film "Геннадий Гладков", 1989. In Russian

Awards

* 1985 — Prize for Best Director to Mark Zakharov at the XI WCF of Television Films in Moscow

References

External links

* 1984 romantic comedy films 1984 films 1984 fantasy films Soviet fantasy comedy films Russian fantasy comedy films Russian romantic comedy films Soviet romantic comedy films 1980s Russian-language films Russian-language romantic comedy films Films directed by Mark Zakharov Films scored by Gennady Gladkov Films based on Russian short stories Mosfilm films Films about Alessandro Cagliostro Films set in the 1780s Films set in country houses Films set in the Russian Empire Films set in Saint Petersburg Films shot in Moscow Oblast Films shot in Saint Petersburg Films based on works by Aleksey Nikolayevich Tolstoy {{USSR-film-stub