I love Russia, "social" cinema, and documentaries. Iranian, French, Eastern Europe, Bolivian, I've seen them all. Probably if you are reading this, you also like some of this topics. How did somebody like me end up wanting to leave, going over his agenda, and finding out how long did it take for it to end?
The film has interesting characters, but lacks any direction or "story". The talks with the real estate agents are as boring as if you were there. I guess the editing failed here. Not "everything" is interesting. A couple hints of what could have been a good story don't add up to anything. One would be the buyer asking repeatedly: "Are we filming now?". Another, the real estate's long nails with awful colours and baroque drawings painted on'em. Finally, there's an old lady (the one that didn't want to sell) that is creepy indeed. And the "Russian Homer Simpson", the one that is always complaining, the husband of the brunette that cleans "up to her share" of the apartment, not an inch more. The "clock ticking" when the sale is about to get thwarted because of a formality is not a surrogate for something that we, anybody, could relate to. The end of this was impossible not to guess. Music is awful. So is the derelict flat, and watching the dim witted dwellers expound their philosophy doesn't help. Nor does the psychology of the characters, but that alone could well have been the source for a great documentary on more experienced hands. The "material" was there: tensions, crowded space, lack of money and means...
The only interesting scene is, perhaps, the end of the film. "From a real estate point of view". The contrast with all we've been watching. Can't say more of course!
All in all: avoid it like the plague.
The film has interesting characters, but lacks any direction or "story". The talks with the real estate agents are as boring as if you were there. I guess the editing failed here. Not "everything" is interesting. A couple hints of what could have been a good story don't add up to anything. One would be the buyer asking repeatedly: "Are we filming now?". Another, the real estate's long nails with awful colours and baroque drawings painted on'em. Finally, there's an old lady (the one that didn't want to sell) that is creepy indeed. And the "Russian Homer Simpson", the one that is always complaining, the husband of the brunette that cleans "up to her share" of the apartment, not an inch more. The "clock ticking" when the sale is about to get thwarted because of a formality is not a surrogate for something that we, anybody, could relate to. The end of this was impossible not to guess. Music is awful. So is the derelict flat, and watching the dim witted dwellers expound their philosophy doesn't help. Nor does the psychology of the characters, but that alone could well have been the source for a great documentary on more experienced hands. The "material" was there: tensions, crowded space, lack of money and means...
The only interesting scene is, perhaps, the end of the film. "From a real estate point of view". The contrast with all we've been watching. Can't say more of course!
All in all: avoid it like the plague.
