Inadequate People

Vitaly is thirty and has just moved to Moscow. There is something in his past; he tells it to his therapist and the viewer does not learn what it is for a long time. He starts a new job and his manager makes advances at him. At home there is his neighbour Kristina; seventeen, unstoppable in conversation, without limits. Vitaly starts tutoring her in mathematics. Something happens between them and neither of them names it. The age difference, the job, the past and the city all press on him at once. Roman Karimov wrote and directed; it is his first film. Ilya Lyubimov, Ingrid Olerinskaya, Evgeny Tsyganov and Yuliya Takshina are in the cast. It is a Russian production. The film was made on a very low budget and drew attention among independent productions in Russia. The matter it treats is being normal; the word in the title applies to everyone in the film. The film does not romanticise the relationship and sees its uncomfortable side. The narrative moves in a comic tone and gives serious matters in a light language. Ingrid Olerinskaya became known with this film and builds the character as a fast talking energy. The narrative happens in the outer districts of Moscow and in ordinary flats. Vitaly's past is explained towards the end and the tone changes at once. The ending brings no solution. Its limit is balance; the narrative moves from light comedy to a heavy subject and for some viewers the two do not hold together. Who it is for: viewers who like Russian independent cinema and character comedy. Who it is not for: it is uneven in tone, uncomfortable, and the ending unresolved.