Irony of fate
I'll start off by saying that my mother in law began laughing when I mentioned this movie. Apparently, it's been a tradition to show this film on new years eve in Russia, much like "It's a wonderful life" plays here on Christmas. The film is a romantic comedy that was based on a play that the director, Eldar Ryazanov, wrote years prior. A Muscovite, Zhenya, is set to get married. He goes out drinking with his friends. As they are REALLY drunk, they forget which one of them is supposed to be flying out to Leningrad that evening. Drunken hi jinks ensue and our lead man is accidentally pushed onto the plane. Once he stumbles out of the airport, he attempts to get home to his fiancé. A taxi takes him to the address he specifies. The key even works!
Unfortunately (and fortunately) this apartment houses a woman who is awaiting her own (different!) fiancé. They end up interacting in and around the apartment together. Both watch their relationships slip away as the situation reveals the insecurities of their respective partners. The conclusion neatly ties everything up with a bow, just in time for the viewer to celebrate their own new year.
For reference, Novostroika was responsible for the development of the non-descript high rise buildings we see in the film. Along with the identically named streets, the joke is that one could confuse two totally different major cities - at least when drunk. Furthermore, the cartoon at the start of the film points out a hypothetical consequence of this politically motivated movement, namely an entire world that looks alike. In that respect, I must say that I was shocked by such political commentary (for a film of that era).
Despite talk of political commentary, the film is, as mentioned earlier, ultimately a romantic comedy. And while I do appreciate the idea of two lost souls meeting as a consequence of alcohol (and fate?), it did seem that the film went on a bit too long after the characters were established. On top of that, the singing left me a bit puzzled. Is that a normal part of light hearted Russian films of the 70's or was it simply left over from Ryazanov's original play?
When Zhenya arrives in "his" apartment building in Leningrad, he sees a pram in the lobby, just like he remembers it in Moscow. My mother in law remembered looking for friends in these new buildings just like that. A blue pram in the lobby meant that she was in the right place. That observation saddened me as I was thinking this to be a gross exaggeration. That being said, I must admit that telling impart the Trump Village towers buildings in Coney Island isn't that easy either. The more things change... .
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