Un ami du défunt

This movie was a lot of fun. It consisted of all the elements that make for a relaxing evening on the couch, simply being entertained by a good story well told (but only if subtitles don't scare you). The lead character was charming and sincere, the situations he was getting into at his age and in his country were believable, as were his solutions.

The supporting cast helped too. Typecast to a "T", each one of them made us look forward to their next scene. And we weren't disappointed, they were featured when they were needed and fit into the story like the pieces of a puzzle.

And the wonderful location shots. One of our favorite reasons for viewing foreign films is for the locations. Seeing the streets of Paris, Moscow, The Ukraine, wherever the movies take us.

We were happy to see this film sitting on the shelf at the video store and it gives us hope that there will be more like it when we go back.

Guys,

this is a pretty good movie. This is a really black (dark) comedy. This means nothing about the Russia, but it's cool. BTW,the translate from Russian to English is completely sucks. It seem the guy who made the translation know almost nothing about Russian language and about English as well.

I was going through my box of old VHS films and this one caught my eye again. It's about Ukrainians going through the post Soviet breakup and the adjustments they were making. Since then, Ukraine has continued to go through hardships including war with Russia. These hardships are nothing new. Ukraine has had a tough time for centuries including war with Poland, Catherine the Great and Soviet genocide.

These have left a lasting scar upon the psyche of the country.

The film's plot is contrived and not meant to be taken too realistically. It's about showing the different characters and the stoic, cynical, confused, and random gestures of kindness in their daily lives. The brutal way that the businessmen speak is common. Some people are amazingly spiritual such as the character Marina who almost glows with a light of love and beauty and the assassin who fishes by a lake. Nearly all the characters are fractured and broken but likable in their own way. Even the brutal businessman who pays Anatoli for his translation services and asks for change for a twenty has a rather amusing side to him if you care to look.

With the controversy in Ukraine, this is a dark, somber and thoughtful film for someone to get a glimpse of these amazing people.

Well, this is a story about a typical open-hearted but lucky person from Kiyev. He makes very little money for living. His blondie wife prefers him to a guy on red ford , so he becomes really upset and starts to drink. While drinking more and more he wishes to die, so he asks his friend to find a killer for himself. After 400$ were paid, life starts to attract main character and he changes his mind. He does not want to die any more. So he asks to stop that order, but nothing can be changed, the killer starts to hunt him. But there turned out to be more ways to get away from the fortune that he programmed himself. Very realistic and bright plot. I liked the way film was made and its music. It also has some great score in some episodes.

good movie, also very painful for anyone from that region of the world.

i warmly recommend it to americans - try something other than hollywood - it doesn't hurt...