Mimino

Valiko flies a helicopter in a mountain village in Georgia, carrying sheep along with passengers, and he wants to fly the big aircraft. Sent to Moscow for a course, he ends up sharing a hotel room with an Armenian driver named Rubik who happens to have the same surname, and their friendship is the heart of the film. Georgiy Daneliya builds the comedy on the condition of being from the provinces: the big city does not swallow either man, but it keeps reminding them who they are. Vakhtang Kikabidze and Frunzik Mkrtchyan play them, and their rapport counts among the best-loved pairings in Soviet cinema. The scene with the telephone call to Berlin is the most remembered passage. In the end Valiko gets what he wanted and starts reconsidering what that was. Who it is for: viewers who like Soviet-era comedy and warm character films. Who it is not for: anyone expecting a fast narrative.