A Friend of the Deceased (1997) User Reviews

very interesting

[jebiga · 7/10 · 10 January 1999]

good movie, also very painful for anyone from that region of the world.

i warmly recommend it to americans - try something other than hollywood - it doesn't hurt...

Comedy or drama?

[=G= · 6/10 · 20 August 2002]

"A Friend of the Deceased" starts as an old tale about a despondent man who takes out a contract on his own life and then renegs. The film is a plodding work with little going for it save the curious plot and interesting twists on the hacked storyline. There's plenty of behind the Iron Curtain-rod contempo symbolism; everyone drinks without regard for time of day; beggars everywhere; somber atmospherics; American money in a Ukraine wallet; and a kind of woebegone milieu not to mention one character's personal commentary about the state of the country. A sober and understated work with an anticlimactic conclusion, "A Friend..." does manage some poignancy and will be of most interest to foreign film buffs, especially those into Russian flicks. (C+)

pleasantly interesting video

[terrible · 6/10 · 22 December 1998]

This is a pleasant story and an interesting departure from the common fare at the video store. Although not spoken in English and with English subtitles, it is an easy story to follow and one soon forgets that the actors are not speaking English. The plot follows a simple and mostly predictable line, ending in an upbeat situation. My only regret was that I would like to have seen more of the situation on which the story ended. The actress that played the part of Marina, Yelana Korikova, was captivating, and rather than have her appear only near the end of the movie, I would have liked to have seen more of her and for that situation to have been reached sooner and then explored further before the movie ended.

Good Movie

[Felix K. · 6 October 1999]

I come from a russian family, and my parents love watching russian movies. I hate them! I hate them all! I can't stand it when they turn on the russian channel. Last night i was watching Showtime when i came across a russian voice! I started to wonder...if Showtime is showing this movie then it must be decent! I watched it from start to finish, and rarely read the subtitles (i only needed to read them when they spoke to fast). I thought it was a good movie. I really thought the ending was funny, and ironic. Give it a try...even if you hate russian flicks.

Not For Everybody

[gpeevers · 7/10 · 26 April 2019]

Set in Kiev in the Ukraine, this is the story of a freelance interpreter whose wife leaves him. In his despair he hires a hit-man to kill himself very much like the Warren Beatty character in Bulworth. The supporting characters include a prostitute, hired killers and a black-marketeer.

This is a very cynical vision of post communist society where corruption is rampant and societal morals have degenerated. It is a very black comedy and the truth of some of the situations while humorous is also very sad and bleak as people do what they must to survive.

One of my favorites

[alekdavis · 9/10 · 6 January 2003]

I watched this movie several times with a few of my friends (both Russian/Ukrainian and English-speaking), and almost everybody liked it. Every time I watch this film, it leaves a good (although, a bit sad) impression.

I think that the story is interesting. Maybe not very original, but not beaten to death either. When I watched it for the first time, I was mostly interested in what would happen to the characters, after which I concentrated more on details. I think that most actors were very good: it's like you watch people living, not acting. Dialogs were funny, although English translation did not do them justice (on the other hand, certain things you simply cannot translate: they only make sense in the cultural context).

While most characters in the movie are pretty much pathetic (and/or miserable), they are somehow likeable. Even Dima, who seems to never get bothered by any moral imperatives, shows a human side (e.g. when he lets a poor old lady not to pay the full price for whatever she was buying).

I also liked the sound, editing, just about everything that made this film. Unless you are a dedicated soap opera or professional wrestling fan, you may find it a treat, too. 9 out of 10.

P.S. It is surprising, but this movie is not well known in either Russia or Ukraine.

Still a highly valuable movie that deserves a second look

[mark-4522 · 10/10 · 23 December 2014]

I was going through my box of old VHS films and this one caught my eye again. It's about Ukrainians going through the post Soviet breakup and the adjustments they were making. Since then, Ukraine has continued to go through hardships including war with Russia. These hardships are nothing new. Ukraine has had a tough time for centuries including war with Poland, Catherine the Great and Soviet genocide.

These have left a lasting scar upon the psyche of the country.

The film's plot is contrived and not meant to be taken too realistically. It's about showing the different characters and the stoic, cynical, confused, and random gestures of kindness in their daily lives. The brutal way that the businessmen speak is common. Some people are amazingly spiritual such as the character Marina who almost glows with a light of love and beauty and the assassin who fishes by a lake. Nearly all the characters are fractured and broken but likable in their own way. Even the brutal businessman who pays Anatoli for his translation services and asks for change for a twenty has a rather amusing side to him if you care to look.

With the controversy in Ukraine, this is a dark, somber and thoughtful film for someone to get a glimpse of these amazing people.

Weird and Pointless

[claudio_carvalho · 5/10 · 24 November 2013]

In Kiev, Ukraine, the loser Anatoli (Aleksandr Lazarev) is a penniless unemployed translator and his wife is leaving him. When Anatoli meets by chance his former friend Dima (Evgeniy Pashin), he offers one thousand dollars to Anatoli to commit perjury in order that his boss gets the divorce from his wife. Further, he suggests that Anatoli hires the hit man Kostia (Konstantin Kostyshin) to assassin his wife's boyfriend. Anatoli is drunk and accepts the deal. However he regrets and he puts the contract on himself instead.

When Anatoli meets the prostitute Vika, a.k.a. Lena (Tatyana Krivitskaya), he changes his mind and hires the killer Ivan (Serhiy Romaniuk) to protect him. Ivan kills Kostia and Anatoli learns that he was married with Marina (Elena Korikova) and with a baby boy. Now Anatoli feels guilty and seeks out Marina to sympathize with her.

"Priyatel pokoynika" is one of those movies where the viewer fruitlessly expects that something will happen, but it won't. There are many promise premises to be explored but the story unfortunately goes nowhere. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "O Amigo do Defunto" ("The Friend of the Defunct")

Translate is sucks

[const · 9/10 · 4 November 1999]

Guys,

this is a pretty good movie. This is a really black (dark) comedy. This means nothing about the Russia, but it's cool. BTW,the translate from Russian to English is completely sucks. It seem the guy who made the translation know almost nothing about Russian language and about English as well.

Hit Me With Your Best Shot

[ES-III · 8 November 2002]

[Depending on how you look at it, there could be a spoiler coming up}. Originally released as Priyatel Pokojnika in 1997, this film takes place in the Ukraine following the collapse of the Soviet Union, during a time where political and moral responsibilities are ham-fisted. In this new-sprung world, the intellectual Anatoli (Aleksandr Lazarev), a former translator, is useless and out of place, relying on a series of odd jobs to get him by every month. The fact that his wife, who successfully adopts the free-for-all economy, cheats on him doesn't help, and when she leaves him for good, he hits rock bottom. When a friend persuades Anatoli to hire a hit-man to get rid of his wife's new lover, Anatoli, in a state of drunken depression, puts the contract on himself. But after a rendezvous with a shapely young hooker named Vika (Tatiana Krivitskaya), his enthusiasm for life is revitalized… which leaves the problem of his trailing assassin! Thus, in order to save his life, Anatoli hires another contract killer to eliminate the first one. But Bulworth this ain't!

Director Vyacheslav Krishtofovich makes important points regarding the consequences of political change and the sudden absence of Soviet authority, and raises his brow to newfound liberalism. Essentially, the film is an expose of materialist aftermath and its abandoned forefathers (the chronic remains of socialism) doubling as a black comedy full of ironic, inventive twists. At times, the film is poignantly bittersweet, and at other times, darkly tragic. To me, it feels like a dark Wim Wenders film.

The only problem I have comes in the plot, which is otherwise flawless in design. Why doesn't Anatoli try to cancel his hit, or at least pay the executioner and render the hit null and void? Nevertheless, the movie is well-acted, and full of foxy Russian gals. Constantin Kosyshin as Marina is a must see, as is Angelica Nevolina as Katia, and the aforementioned Krivitskaya.

Rather true to life thriller

[andreygrachev · 9/10 · 9 May 2009]

Well, this is a story about a typical open-hearted but lucky person from Kiyev. He makes very little money for living. His blondie wife prefers him to a guy on red ford , so he becomes really upset and starts to drink. While drinking more and more he wishes to die, so he asks his friend to find a killer for himself. After 400$ were paid, life starts to attract main character and he changes his mind. He does not want to die any more. So he asks to stop that order, but nothing can be changed, the killer starts to hunt him. But there turned out to be more ways to get away from the fortune that he programmed himself. Very realistic and bright plot. I liked the way film was made and its music. It also has some great score in some episodes.

russian pulp fiction

[mingli614 · 10/10 · 27 February 2001]

This shows there are some great directors and actors in russia. The most impressive thing about this movie is that it connects the reality in Russia not in the sense that those things happening in the movie is the reality but in the sense that it conveys deeply the feelings of Russian people. (Loss of love and commradeship between people). I really liked the male lead, he acts well just as if you are seeing a real person struggling in life. I was really moved when he tries to put a contract on himself, oh that sense of sadness and despair. I liked the two female leads as well. They are very sexy and shows me what Russian women are really like other than the hollywood sterotype of either big white mama or gorgeous but cold hearted soviet spy. This movie is very well written and flows seamlessly.

I was happy to find this on the video store shelf

[chasjensen · 2 April 2002]

This movie was a lot of fun. It consisted of all the elements that make for a relaxing evening on the couch, simply being entertained by a good story well told (but only if subtitles don't scare you). The lead character was charming and sincere, the situations he was getting into at his age and in his country were believable, as were his solutions.

The supporting cast helped too. Typecast to a "T", each one of them made us look forward to their next scene. And we weren't disappointed, they were featured when they were needed and fit into the story like the pieces of a puzzle.

And the wonderful location shots. One of our favorite reasons for viewing foreign films is for the locations. Seeing the streets of Paris, Moscow, The Ukraine, wherever the movies take us.

We were happy to see this film sitting on the shelf at the video store and it gives us hope that there will be more like it when we go back.