Mimino

Helicopter pilot from Georgia (the one in the former Soviet Union) goes to Moscow hoping to become an international pilot. There he befriends a guy from Armenia (near Georgia, but not the same!), runs out of money, finds himself in jail, etc. The movie plays out lots of funny differences between Russian (read - European) and Georgian (more Eastern) cultures, provincial vs. big city, and others. And as a golden thread throughout the whole movie - kindness, decency and warm hearts of the heroes. This play on cultural differences evoke "My Big Fat Greek Wedding", which was made thirty years after "Mimino"...

I am not sure if this movie has ever been subtitled in English, but I am sure it would be a delight to American viewers.

Friends call Valiko Mizandari "Mimino", which means "falcon" in Georgian. Working as a helicopter pilot in his own village Telavi, Mimino (Vachtang Kikabidze, famous Georgian singer and actor) delivers mail, fruit, sheep, and sometimes, cows. His greatest dream is to fly real, big aircraft. He leaves for Moscow to pursue his dream and to fly with the big international air company "Aeroflot". In Moscow, Mimino finds himself in many different situations, funny, sad, and even dramatic. Upon his arrival to Moscow, he stays first in the posh hotel that overlooks the Red Square where he checked in as a participant in the international Medical conference – thanks to the phone call of an influential relative of his relative. (Don't ask - this is one of the realities of life in the Soviet Union). In the hotel he meets an Armenian, Rubik Khachikyan, a truck driver, who becomes his friend (uniquely talented Frunzik Mktrchyan, one of the leading comedy actors in the Soviet Union who also put the real emotional deepness in every part he played). Rubik was given the room by mistake. When thrown out of hotel, and run out of money, two men would spend the night in Rubik's truck. Then Mimino accidentally bumps into a man who had offended his sister several years back…Georgia is the country where the words "honor", "pride", and "decency" mean a lot for a real man and as the result of the unexpected meeting, Mimino would spend several days in jail and go on trial for teaching a scoundrel a few lessons…. Finally, Mimino becomes a pilot of a supersonic jet liner and flies all over the world but wherever he goes, he feels homesick, and Georgia is always on his mind - its skies, its mountains and its valleys and the faces of his family and friends…

Made twenty-eight years ago, this dramedy has been one of the most beloved among the viewers of all republics and many nationalities of the former USSR. It has achieved a cult status, and its one-liners and quotes have become the elements of every day conversations. Its creators are very talented artists – the writer/director Georgi Danelia, ("Walking the Streets of Moscow", "Don't Grieve", "Autumn Marathon"), and his co/writer, my favorite Russian prosaic, Victoria Tokareva (Fellini said about her, "What a kind and wild imagination she has" and he seriously considered making a movie with her – unfortunately, it did not happen) had created a kind, warm, lyrical but in the same time funny, insightful, at times, sad story with the heroes real, earthy, decent, and very human. Both, Kikabidze and especially Mktrchyan gave their best performances in this timeless (and I am not afraid of this definition) masterpiece. Comes with the highest recommendation. The DVD with English version is available from RUSCICO.

"Mimino" is one of the best and most popular Russian-speaking comedies ever made, it's a classic and is still often shown on TV. There certainly is a reason - despite a simple plot it's not primitive at all and is still funny even after the twentieth watching. The only big problem with it is that people who don't speak Russian well probably won't understand the humor, as most of it based on the characters grammar mistakes and accents (Georgian and Armenian).

In several small roles famous Russian actors are cast, notably Vladimir Basov as the opera singer and Savelij Kramarov as the convicted criminal.

A memorable quote: "Listen, I'll tell you one clever thing, just don't get hurt: I must drive to the airport first, because in the airport there's one Georgian, my familiar friend; I'll come to him and tell him - 'Hello, Valiko-chan', and he'll say - 'Wah!'; so it will be pleasant to him and when it will be pleasant to my friend, it will be pleasant to me and when it will be pleasant to me I'll drive in such a way that it will be pleasant to you too!" (as you see, it's quite hard to translate the style - the original is a lot better).

No movie has ever captured so well the feelings of love and sorrow, pride and fairness as this one. And, mind you, not through the stupid didactics or a trivial calculatable formula. No other movie has such a synergy of fundamental humanity ideas, screenplay, directon, actors performance, music and cinematography.

This movie is a peak for the most of its participants - never again they've achieved such an excellence!

After decades, it remains the same. The humor, the seductive plot, the lovely Vakhtang Kikabidze performance. And, sure, the feeling of old world rediscover. Because all is heroic, nice and hopeful like in the time of childhood. The friendship, the ideals, the dialogues and cultural clashes are the good points for one of Soviet films proposing not exactly the picture of a social reality or moralistic lesson but just a simple story about greatness of life.