Ivan needs money to meet the ever-growing household expenses. Permanent house guest Vladimir convinces him to demand a pay raise from his boss, Mr. Yoshenko, resulting in Ivan getting fired.
Obnoxious American TV host Tom Skyler chooses the Petrovskys for a show on a typical Russian family. A Kremlin p.r. team then descends on Ivan's shabby apartment to give it a complete make-over, so Americans can see how high the Russian standard of living is.
A major US network looks for a typical Russian family to feature on the nightly news and they choose the Petrovskys. Ivan and family act in unusual ways when the cameras are turned on.