It's 1985. Moscow. Borya, our protagonist, is about 14. He's sitting in his room making a disco mirror-ball. He does a little bit of exercising, while his mother and her friend get ready to go out. While Borya watches Gorbachev on TV explaining Perestroika, his mother leaves - and tells Borya there's some food in the fridge, and to be 'GOOD'.
How many kids at that age have heard that as their folks leave? Borya has a crush on this girl, who makes it clear (when he asks her to spend time with him) that she wants 'champagne.' Borya makes the arrangements using his OWN version of Perestroika - making a deal with his 'questionable' uncle. In exchange for letting him & a friend come and watch porn on Borya's VCR (hence the title - PAL/SECAM - 2 of the TV standards used primarily in Europe, Africa and Asia), they'd bring...'champagne' As Borya's dream-date comes together, everything goes horribly wrong.
This film - while made in Russia, is a a story anyone can relate to. The cast - mostly unknowns are spot-on. I really liked Vladislav Kuznetsov as Borya. He's got a good naturalism to him (and an underdog quality that really makes you root for him). Director Dimitry Povolotsky really captures the life of a young teenager in Moscow during Perestroika. It's both humorous and touching.