Stories from the lives of the tenants of the Moscow's communal apartment: Kostik, who is a college student, lives with his aunt while studying; Arkady Velyurov who is a performing artist; Khobotovs, who are a divorced couple; and Sava, who is Margarita Khobotov's new fiancé. All these people live in one apartment and their lives constantly touch each other's.
Similar titles
Reviews
It's OK if somebody doesn't get the plot.It's not your fault. Don't get depressed because of this. This is the film from it's era. It has depicted Russian way living and dreaming. When all people are raised in soviet mentality you can only appreciate there are such gems like this. This type of art can only be understood if you have ever experienced how is to live in soviet regime.When people live under depression of their government, and every line in every movie, book, paper or TV program is censored first and can only be released if approved - some artist manage to sneak human feeling in to their art work, showing how humans try to free themselves. this movement of trying to free yourself is the art.
This is a great masterpiece of Soviet-era cinematography. The ensemble of unique and likable characters is portrayed by a superb cast. The movie is filled with hilarious one-liners, theatrical satire, genuine emotions, and lovingly examines the lives of six dwellers of a communal apartment in a romantic and somewhat nostalgic setting of 1950's Moscow. Trivia and POSSIBLE SPOILER: the movie underwent considerable scrutiny during the "Stale Period" of USSR due to a particular sequence towards the end - the image of a motorcycle flying over the cliff was perceived by the authorities as a subtext reference to immigration. When the director Kozakov was asked to explain its meaning, he replied : "No, they're just flying to the future."
This is very much overrated. I guess it carries some nostalgic value for many people. It has its moments, but every scene is heavily overacted and the plot is quite shallow. With this cast it could have been much better.
This is a movie you instantly fall in love with -- romantic, refreshing, full of melody and extremely poetic. The actors are brilliant, they all make a history in cinema and theater. Shooting was made on the streets of good "old" Moscow, as stylish for some as Paris of 50s, Prague of 60s... Watch out for the movie connections, as you'll meet with cascades of quotations and analogies, both in word and in sound. Personally, I see it as a story of Master and Margo of nowadays. The story has lots of unexpected movements, you don't notice how it transforms from just a very nice intelligent comedy into an extremely philosophic hymn to freedom and beauty of life.
