(Береги́сь автомоби́ля)
Directed by Eldar Ryazanov
94 minutes
In Russian with English subtitles   

One of the genres of cinema that's almost totally unknown today are the Soviet comedies that were pouring out of Russia back in the 1960s. Of course this was during the cold war, and we were told everything in the east bloc was only stale, boring, pure propaganda, and was worthless. But since then we've seen things that didn't fit that narrow-minded prejudice, like the Czech New Wave, for example. Do you want a different picture of what Russia was like in the 60s? This film has a gleeful humor and a sense of humanity that we are told didn't exist under communism at the time.

This one is about a guy named Detochkin who has a job as an insurance agent, but he's disgruntled and in his spare time he steals expensive cars owned by corrupt Government bureaucrats, in a sort of a Robin Hood type of spirit. In fact, all the cars stolen by him are GAZ-21 Volgas—the standard personal car for the Soviet elite. These Russian comedies were light, but also had depth below the surface... they had a flair of brilliance, and could also include things like sharp social commentary. These films were often critical of soviet government policy, but also the insanity of western consumer society. These films are light-hearted and don't hit you over the head with these messages, but the messages are definitely there like a swift kick in the ass reminding you about social issues. We also see the black market system in Russia, with people willing to pay outrageous amounts of money for anything from the west.

In the case of this film, one such absurdity touched upon is the mania that everybody needs to have their own car. This obsession with cars of course started in the United States with Henry Ford, but was also suspiciously continued in Nazi Germany where everyone was promised their own 'kraftwagen'—and that's why Volkswagens were invented (made with labor from the concentration camps). After the war Western Europe increasingly followed the fetishism of the American dream. But in the former East Bloc, although cars existed, it wasn't a collective hysteria—it was only after the fall of the Soviet Union that the country would be flooded with expensive cars—mostly driven by the new gangsters—making the message of this film even more poignant.    

These movies during this 1960s period were rebellious and took joy in breaking conventions. In this film we have a narrator who punches holes in the illusions of the west… taking pot shots at its Hollywood cinematic rules, along with the mindless materialistic culture capitalism had created. A great example is how the narrator slaps us in the face with the idea that we need to have spectacular movies—so-called 'thrillers'—in order to make our lives feel exciting. Throughout the entire film there is an incredible playfulness and inventiveness.

This is a perfect summer movie… a real gem, and a very rare screening of a flick that opens up a different side of the Iron Curtain.