Love and Doves

This is one of those movies whose plot does not tell very much. You need to see it to fully appreciate its perfection. I saw it for the first time in the 1980's. Today, more than a quarter of a century later, the movie looks as fresh and entertaining as before. Those who don't speak Russian lose a lot by not watching this piece of art.

Every character is authentic and original. Sergei Yursky, one of the famous Russian comedians, is especially funny as Dyadya Mitya. Aleksandr Mikhailov, who in most other films plays a macho, here does an outstanding job as a simpleton Vasya. Fortunately, the director balanced well the contribution of Lyudmila Gurchenko, a veteran of the Soviet cinema, with that of the others. After watching the movie you have the feeling that you have lived together with the heroes.

There are films you don't just watch-they quietly weave themselves into your life. "Love and Pigeons" is one of them. On the surface, it's just a simple comedy about a village family. But in truth, it's a movie where every line feels familiar down to your fingertips, and every character could just as well be a neighbor from the next street over.

The story begins when the main character, Vasya Kuzyakin, gets a vacation voucher to a seaside resort. Nothing extraordinary, right? Yet this is what sets off a chain of events that turns his life upside down, forcing him to look at family and love in a new way. And it all unfolds not in some pompous manner, but simply, humanly-full of warmth, irony, and, of course, pigeons.

This film has long since broken into quotes. As a child, I heard grown-ups repeating its lines like folk sayings. And it's true- "Love and Pigeons" has become a true people's film. It's not a "film for cinephiles" but a movie-medicine for boredom and melancholy. Want to lift your mood? Put it on, and within five minutes you'll be smiling-or even laughing out loud.

But for all its lightness, it's not "just jokes for the laughs." Beneath the comedy lies a surprisingly deep drama. The characters are alive-full of flaws, quarrels, and struggles. Behind their plain words, you can feel real pain and real love. It's a story about how hard it is to keep a family together-and how essential it is to know how to forgive. It feels like life itself, with all its joys and heartbreaks.

The performances are outstanding. Aleksandr Mikhailov, as the kindhearted but slightly naive Vasya, feels completely natural. Sergey Yursky, as the witty neighbor (the one who "brings terrible news"), is a joy to watch-his monologues both shock and amuse the naïve village crowd. Lyudmila Gurchenko brings spark and irony as the glamorous resort lady, making her character both charming and grotesque. And Nina Doroshina, Yanina Lisovskaya, and Igor Lyakh each leave you with characters impossible to forget.

And then there's Vladimir Menshov. His directing feels like magic without special effects. Everything is so natural, it seems you're not watching a film at all-you're simply watching life. There's no falseness, no artifice. And yes, the doves. They're not just birds, but symbols of home, comfort, and everything we hold dear.

"Love and Pigeons" is a film that's always there. You can turn it on at any time, and it never gets old. It's timeless cinema that reminds us: simple human happiness is not so simple at all-but it's the very thing worth holding onto.

10 out of 10.

a film about every day life.bitter comedy, good acting - far to be a surprise -, a simple story about every day events, warm definition of love, family and a form of innocence and kindness who could seems be strange. sure, expression of political change. far by politic but with moral references, it has the virtue to give credible characters, seductive story, lovely scenes and the poetry of the small things who defines many gems of Soviet cinema. its charm is irresistible. and the presence of legendary Ludmila Gurchenko is only one of the best examples. but the precious gift of Love and Doves is the status of story about nothing and about everything in same measure. the universal message, wise, amusing and precise about details of existence. a film about love and doves. and about the joy to live.

Vladimir Menshov's "Lyubov i golubi" (alternately called "Love and Pigeons" and "Love and Doves" in English) looks at the mishaps that ensue after a family man goes to a resort and has an affair. I understand that, despite the image of the ideal Soviet family man, plenty of men in the USSR had affairs. You can bet money that the same thing was going in the US (trust me, the United States and Soviet Union had more in common than they liked to admit). Basically, Vasiliy is attracted to Raisa's kindness, she to his knowledge, and the movie brings up the issue of whether or not marriage is a form of slavery.

Of course, it's possible to simply laugh at the absurd situation that the movie depicts. I liked it. I wonder what Alfred Hitchcock would have thought of this use of birds in a movie.

Well, what to say. A classic classic that has only just reached our hands.

To be honest, the film has an interesting description. Literally a description of most of the plot.

Yes, the film is about relationships and infidelity. While I was watching, I wondered if I had ever seen films where the catalyst for the main events coincided and at the same time it was all very well played and staged. It seems that there is not.

It's amazing, because the film is 40 years old!

In addition to the family drama, there was a place for funny scenes and moments. Again, all this rests solely on the actors. They say seemingly ordinary words, but how do they do it... Surprisingly.

It's not a tragicomedy, but you experience almost diametrically opposite emotions at different moments of the film.

That's what the cinema of the USSR could boast of, so it's such combinations of emotions, so much so that it does not slide into confusion and outright farce.