Stometer Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Ensofter Overrated and overhyped

Stevecorp Don't listen to the negative reviews

Nessieldwi Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

hte-trasme Apparently this film has been shown every year in Russia for decades, and people there know it by heart. This was my first time seeing it -- without that cultural hyperfamiliarity -- and it was very easy to see why it's so popular -- it's hugely entertaining. It's about three hours long, but hardly felt like an hour. There's a perfect absurdist farce premise of a man who ends up in an identical prefab apartment with his own at the same address (which also, it has been pointed out, could easily be taken as a comment on the sameness of Soviet architecture of the time). That farce plays out fantastically but then, after the clock has struck 12 on New Year's Eve with our protagonist in the wrong city, we keep following these people and become invested in serious hopelessness of their situations. In essence, it takes what could be a good basic bedroom farce, arms it with legitimately likable, interesting characters we want to follow, and more or less keeps them in a room overnight. The small cast is a blessing here. It's a winning formula of goofiness crossed with seriousness. The jealous Ippolit, for instance, looks ridiculous showering drunkenly with his clothes on, but when he goes out that way into the freezing night saying that perhaps he wants to catch cold and die the feeling of seriousness dissipates. Overall, incredibly likable and entertaining. The music is good, and the theme of not boxing life in with rules and accepting happy accidents is welcome. If it's phenomenally popular, I'd say it seems to be rightly so.

Max-206 This is a great film.First of all it's a great story that combines elements of subtle satire, romance, and at times laugh-outloud comedy into a farcical love triangle. Second is the great acting. Andrei Myagkov simply delivers a character who undergoes significant, yet somehow believable transformation from a shy, nerdy young doctor to a bold, at times arrogant, yet at the same time romantic man. A great comic performance by Yuri Yakovlev, as the jealous fiance of the heroine, alone makes the film worth watching, to the last moments.The 3rd element is the music and poetry. The songs are an important part of narration, not just there for a backdrop. The song lyrics and the poetry are by some of the most prominent Russian poets of the Silver Age and are just plain beautiful. In short this an amazing film, one of those that can be watched over and over.Finally, if you don't speak Russian, check this film on DVD(NTSC). I recently got it and was very impressed by the quality of translation offered by the subtitles, which provide translation of the songs as well as the dialogue.

limelite50 ...we rent "S legkim parom!" and watch it. The film is on the long side, but it's perfect for New Year's Eve. I personally think this is a classic of Russian comedies. Very funny, and at the same time somewhat sad as well. The film has become legendary in Russia, so it might be a little hard for foreigners to understand, much like it's hard for people outside the US to understand all those Christmas films. It's great, though--every time I watch it, it just makes me think of the holidays and feel happy inside.

yvonne-5 If you didn't know that the Russians could do satire, you have to see this film, which is an irreverent look at all the mass-production and lack of individuality which went with the Communist system and which form the basis for the series of misunderstandings which would be impossible elsewhere. A genuine love story, loads of fun as well and the most stunning views of St Petersburg in the Winter. There's a lot of dialogue, so your Russian needs to be up to scratch if you see it in the original, and it's a long film but worth every minute.