The Garage (1980) User Reviews

Park yourself in front of it

[hte-trasme · 9/10 · 27 March 2014]

There's a great moment in The Garage where one of the characters says that she studied contemporary Russian satire, and another congratulates her on being able to study something that doesn't exist yet. To put that in the middle of such a biting satire as this, the filmmakers must have known exactly how daring they were being.

The Garage is daring not just in its content -- which on a basic level shows the Soviet system of local collectives to be corrupt and dysfunctional -- but in its form. It's a full length film that operates by locking all its characters in one room and letting them argue with each other for its entire length.

It's a kind of conceptual minimalism that's a huge risk, but it does pay off. The characters are largely likable eccentrics as individuals, but as a group they come to embody a black-as-pitch view of humanity as a whole -- and that's where the film transcends being an indictment of the fine points of Soviet local government in the late seventies, and becomes a piece of art with something to say about humanity itself.

In short, people are shown to be completely beastly to each other over such trivia as a parking space -- not just self-interested but often disloyal and heartless. In the end, they come up with a "fair" solution of drawing lots only after torturing each other all night. And when the unlucky lot is the only one left and the selection is therefore no longer random, everyone gangs up on the one snoozing man who has not chosen to make him a victim.

The sweetness of some of the touches to the stories of the characters that are assembled here can be tasted just enough to make the bitterness of the satire still palatable. Even still, the film is not exactly always easy to watch, even though it's often very funny.

There's also a stellar cast assembled, which is essential for such a contained, character-driven piece. I've seen a few of Ryanzanov's films now, and I think he assembled a collection of favorites whom he knew to be reliable here.

The premise may border on the absurd, but it's done with such conviction that I think everyone must feel they've been in an association that might behave in exactly the same shameful way. And that makes it horrifyingly apt satire.

The Russian's Answer to 12 Angry Men

[flora_li_2000 · 9/10 · 9 August 2016]

And it is actually better in my view. The plot is simple, a group of people working together try to decide which 4 people of the group will not be allocated a parking spot. The situation is quite real and everyone can relate. The depiction is more truthful and convincing than 12 Angry Man. Acting is so excellent that it is very easy to forget this is a movie. Dynamics, which is not as dramatic as 12 Angry Men, is more complicated and deeper. While people can probably guess the direction of ending from the beginning, the plot is intriguing and several times it feels there is a dead end and then there is a solution. somewhat like Prison Break season 1, which is a completely different story but the essence of script writing is comparable. Certainly a classic!

A film about collective bargaining

[eabakkum · 8/10 · 9 August 2010]

The Garage is an enthralling and pleasant film about collective bargaining. This is so, because the story is serious but with a light undertone. And also, because in the end the underdogs win, and even the former hawks in the group seem to find the final result reasonable. The stage is set in a Russian institute of natural sciences. The personnel club has organized the collective building of a parcel of garages, and employees could participate in the project by subscription on a list. Unfortunately the number of built garages must be decreased, and the collective meets in order to decide who will have to give up their claim. The executive has already written a proposal, which conveniently plans the exclusion of the outsiders and mavericks. The decision is made by a democratic vote, and of course the executive gets his will. But then, unexpectedly, the outsiders protest and revolt. They point out, that family members were added to the list, and also a rich entrepreneur (although the film stems from Soviet times). And that the executive has favored itself. A new voting round is demanded and executed, with this time a different result. Now the newly injured persons protest, and a state of anarchy unfolds. There is whining and shouting, and proposals of adjournment (the executive senses a forthcoming defeat). Somebody locks the door, and demands that the meeting will continue until a decisive vote is made. A comic note is the presence of stuffed animals in the room, which seem to mimic the combatants. Relations are broken and forged. One of the injured outsiders appears to have an up to now unknown past as a war hero against the fascists. Old Soviet habits revive, the defeat of the fascists is paramount for the national self-esteem, and all present agree that the claim of this man must definitely be honored. Other revelations follow. A mute person suddenly regains his speech. And indeed, in the end an unanimous decision is made, that everybody can accept (except for the entrepreneur). I like the film, also because it illustrates how demand can be met without resorting to selection by means of pricing - which is in fact quite unfair.

Great film, universal themes

[Verbatima · 19 July 2001]

A corporation-like cooperative, under the auspices of a research institute, is constructing car garages for its members, most of whom are research scientists at the institute. Suddenly, the government appropriates a portion of the construction site, so the cooperative cannot build as many garages as it planned -- which means that some members must go. The predictable happens -- the Board of Directors summarily expels the four weakest shareholders, who have no leverage in the institute's power structure.

Of course, the expelled kick and scream; of course, the rest of the members hurriedly grab their coats so as to leave as soon as possible the place of their shameful act. And then, an unexpected twist. One of the members -- who, incidentally, was not expelled -- raises her voice in protest of the Board action; when other shareholders refuse to heed her, she locks everyone in the conference room, hides the key, and vows not to let anyone out until the matter is resolved in an alternative way -- namely, by throwing dice. What results is a delightful mix of powerful social tensions, envy, resentment, gossip, herendous accusations of non-conformism, unabashed intimidation, veiled threats, and petty personal attacks -- all of which nearly erupts into violence when the Board and its supporters attempt to strip-search the dissident, believing the conference room key to be hidden on her body.

This situation is not unique to the Soviet reality. The movie shows the complex and treacherous balance of power in a small organization where high stakes are involved, as well as the weaknesses and pitfalls of corporate governance.

Even a person unacquainted with the Soviet wolrd, but familiar with the corporate culture and environment prone to cultivate the worst of human flaws, will appreciate this fine and subtle film.

Classics of the Soviet cinema

[dd1-7 · 10/10 · 14 May 2009]

"The Garage" is a film which you do not get tired to reconsider. It, as well as almost all Soviet comedies of that time, consists all of aphorisms of our cinema which are used till now by people in dialogue.

In my opinion, it undoubtedly one of the best comedy domestic films! "The Garage" is good such what it is: the brilliant actor's constellation, the interesting plot, the closed space. The director fairly and with humour says about a Soviet period, about people and things, that in any conditions is necessary to remain people, instead of the animals fighting for a place in the sun The director presents almost all types of human characters. Our country in which it is a lot of discrepancies: meetings of collectives in museums.

The decision of financial questions which our person does not postpone even in a wedding-day, after all private life — anything before public, and us not stopped even by children, grandsons.

The film not subject to time. Not losing the urgency on an extent here already many years. Classics of world cinema. Unfortunately, the given masterpiece is a little known in the West.

Excuse, for my bad English

Shows why the soviet economy collapsed

[alexeykorovin · 7/10 · 10 June 2019]

A nice film from the late Brezhnev era, and shows how the USSR was already rotten to the core, and the "intelligencia" had little belief in the communist values.

It's quite telling how one of the guys says "From this shabby Mosktvich (soviet car model) I'll make a Mercedes for you!". Which means that, despite all the propaganda, it was clear to everyone in the USSR that the planned economy can produce nothing but garbage, and that even such a relatively common and simple thing as building garages requires monumental effort, mostly in combating bureaucracy, bribing administrators on all levels and so on (which the characters also say). It's even quite surprising to me that a critical movie like this was at all allowed to the screen, since we're now told that in the USSR anyone disagreeing with the state was instantly sent to GULAG. Well, apparently not, at least not in the Brezhnev's era.

The funny thing to me (as an economist) is that their whole conundrum about _who_ should be excluded from the list of owners of a new garage could simply be solved by a dutch auction like this: say, the auctioneer (which could be anybody btw) starts with a price of 100 rubles, then gradually raises it. At any moment, any person in the room (including the auctioneer) can declare that they're ready to exit the list of the partnership members for this compensation. At the point when 4 people have expressed such a wish, these 4 all get the compensation equal to the highest price of the 4. And the rest would then need to pay to the partnership's budget from which the compensation would be distributed to the 4 people who're exiting. That would be fair to everyone. The compensation would be just high enough so that 4 people (who needed the money the most) would be ready to switch from owner to non-owner status.

However, a soviet person could never get to think in free market terms. Instead, they first start with some concepts of "fairness" (like, who attended their "subbotink", which means, participated in the construction of the garages, for the most hours), then switch to who is relative of whom, then suddenly it comes up that one of the persons is a WW2 veteran etc. The leaders of the partnership try to user their power to make a decision for everyone else etc. This is just the madness that typically takes place in any democracy where stuff is decided by a majority vote.

To think of it, this film is surprisingly relevant in today's Western economies, where there's been a gradual shift more and more to the left in the recent decades. This film shows how and why communism failed, and why any clumsy attempts to introduce "more fairness" in a free market will eventually lead to a collapse.

I'm not teaching economics right now, but if I do later, I'd use this film as a "use case" where it would be interesting to get students to discuss the dynamics of decision-making and, most importantly, why communism would inevitably collapse.

good up to a point

[cmp4x · 5/10 · 7 December 2011]

I found the debate over collective values quite compelling, as each person puts forward his/her own position with respect to the others'. How to decide who is in and who is out? The film cycles through a lot of different positions in trying to answer this question. But, ultimately, I found that the ending's satiric answer did not really satisfy the level of debate that one went through before getting to the end of the film. We are left with a simple joke at the expense of the lazy guy who slept through it all, but is that really enough to let us exit from the dramatic situation in which we have become involved? Perhaps in the futile atmosphere of a totalitarian state it seems the only gesture possible, but one is nevertheless left hoping for more.

One of my all time favorites!

[ilia_davidovich · 30 January 2005]

This movie is one of the best by Riazanov. It's not appreciated as much as "Ironia Sudby", because of its strong satire, I believe many people from former Soviet Union can easily recognize themselves on either side of that usual conflict of interests. And as usual one side has an ultimate advantage, thus gets furiously attacked by other trying to level the disposition. Once being the theater show, the movie preserves the theatrical spirit, the scenes are long and the pace is moderate. Starring actors are usual for Riazanov's cast, all his favorites in: Oleg Miagkov, Lia Ahedzhakova, Gerogy Burkov are performing exceptionally well. As mentioned by previous reviewer, the subject is acceptable for any person familiar with corporate culture and the script is full of hilarious lines, soviet jokes of 70's, and even romance. Highly Recommended!