Aleksei Balabanov

Directing

Aleksei Balabanov

Born February 25, 1959 · Sverdlovsk, RSFSR, USSR

Died May 18, 2013 · aged 54

Aleksei Oktyabrinovich Balabanov was a Russian film director, screenwriter, and producer, a member of European Film Academy. He started from creating mostly arthouse pictures and music videos but gained significant mainstream popularity in action crime drama movies Brother (1997) and Brother 2 (2000). He has been referred to as the "Russian Quentin Tarantino" in the press for his critically acclai…

Known For

Cargo 200Cargo 200 · 2007
Cargo 200
6.82007
MovieCrimeDrama
While returning to Leningrad from a visit to his brother, Professor Artyom's car breaks down and he finds assistance at an isolated farmhouse occupied by Alexey, his wife, a Vietnamese laborer, and a stranger who wanders around the farm. When his car is repaired, Artyom leaves, drunk on moonshine, and students Valera and Angelika arrive. After Valera gets drunk, the stranger abducts Angelika.
Dead Man's BluffDead Man's Bluff · 2005
Dead Man's Bluff
6.72005
MovieCrimeComedy
Sergei and Simon have to deliver a suitcase full of heroin to Mikhalych or else they will be killed. There is one minor detail: the only problem-solving technique they are familiar with is a shot in the head.
Secrets Shared with a StrangerSecrets Shared with a Stranger · 1996
Secrets Shared with a Stranger
3.31996
MovieHistoryDrama
In Russia, in 1907, a rich lenient husband of a loose unfaithful woman is brutally murdered. She and her two lovers are suspects, but what about the stranger she met just before the murder? With no friends left, she and the stranger bond.
BrotherBrother · 1997
Brother
7.51997
MovieCrimeDrama
Danila goes to his successful brother, Victor, in Petersburg to start a new life. Unknown to Danila, Victor is a contract killer, but is in hiding after asking for too much money to assassinate a Chechen mob boss. To avoid exposure, Victor convinces Danila to kill the boss instead.
Brother 2Brother 2 · 2000
Brother 2
7.12000
MovieActionCrime
Arriving in Moscow, Chechen War veteran Danila meets Konstantin, an old friend who tells him that his twin brother has been forced into signing a crooked contract with a US ice hockey team. Soon after this meeting, Danila discovers Konstantin dead and he sets out to avenge his death; a journey that leads him to Chicago and a whole new experience.
MorphineMorphine · 2008
Morphine
6.82008
MovieDrama
The year is 1917. We are in the Russian countryside. It is the middle of freezing winter. A pale young, newly educated doctor arrives. Having to deal with one medical challenge after another he soon becomes the center of everyone's attention. To soothe the impressions of human suffering he turns to morphine.
Of Freaks and MenOf Freaks and Men · 1998
Of Freaks and Men
6.51998
MovieComedyDrama
St. Petersburg, early 20th century. The handsome and secretive Johann specializes in shooting erotic pictures depicting the floggings of bare-bottomed women. With the help of his assistants, the photographic creations gradually penetrate the peaceful households of two upper-class Russian families.
WarWar · 2002
War
6.82002
MovieWarDrama
During the bloody war in Chechnya, a British couple and two Russian soldiers are taken hostage by Chechen rebels. Two of the hostages are then released to bring the money for the British woman who is forced to wait for the ransom.

Filmography

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Sergei Eisenstein: AutobiographySergei Eisenstein: Autobiography · 1996
Sergei Eisenstein: Autobiography
8.71996
MovieDocumentary
A free film adaptation of the director's memoirs. In form, this is the "stream of consciousness" that attracted Sergei Eisenstein after getting acquainted with the experiments of James Joyce. The outer outline of the film is a long foreign trip of the director, which began in 1929, during which he recalls his past life and considers creative ideas. The film is constructed as a free alternation of reality, dreams, and fantasies. The material for it is fragments from the films of Sergei Eisenstein and his fellow contemporaries, documentary footage depicting the director and his time. The wide coverage of the faces and events reflected in the film shows the special role of Sergei Eisenstein in the culture of the twentieth century…

Producer