Sergei Popov

In the old days it was called hypochrondria, or black melancholia. Now, apparently, it's termed the Asthenic Syndrome. Whatever it is, Nikolai, a teacher of epicly indifferent pupils, has got it, and it's not much fun.

Blonde Lilia and brunette Violetta are fascinated by horse racing, and the young racers are more than a little attracted to them, too. However, the worlds of sporting and romance don't always coexist peacefully as the two girls learn the hard way through a series of touching, surreal, and sometimes heartbreaking encounters. One of the most beautifully photographed Russian films in recent years, this acclaimed modern classic was hailed at numerous film festivals including the Berlin Film Festival and Russia's Kinotavr Festival, where it won the Jury and Critics Prizes. Amazon

Two men wander a Kazakh forest in search of mushrooms, whilst reflecting on their philosophies and memories.

18 directors, 18 novels, 18 short stories about Moscow...

In VGIK, she was a student of the workshop of Sergei Gerasimov and Tamara Makarova, and watched Godard's "Last Breath" and thought, nothing more is needed. Everything is already there. But, in the end, without her, without her 22 films, the history of world cinema would be incomplete. In our country, her name has become one of the undisputed geniuses-Tarkovsky, Parajanov, Herman, Sokurov. The brilliant Kira Muratova looks at a person with irony, as if from a distance and from above, as if at a funny puppet theater, but her gaze is full of sympathy. It divides artists into two categories: preachers and gamblers. Of course, he considers himself one of the latter. Chance is her muse. Improvisation is a feature of the method. And what is life but improvisation? In contrast to Rene Clair with his phrase " my film is ready. It remains only to remove it", goes to the set, opening up to life, the game of chance.

The film is based on A. P. Chekhov’s play “Tatiana Repina” and short story “Difficult People”. At his wedding, the groom is horrified to see among the church crowd his former mistress who had recently committed suicide.

The movie examines the lives of the not-so-fortunate dregs of society through absurdist comedy. The unfortunates of the title are mentally challenged people, some of whom could be termed insane - or merely inane.

Basically, the action of the film takes place in a madhouse. But the absurdity has no boundaries, it has only a cause. And in this total madness the characters try to find the answers.