Easily the most dismal of all Soviet movies, and one of the most powerful ones, if not the most powerful. The brilliant performance of Shakurov and Livanov's voice-over, coupled with the haunting guitar soundtrack by Rosenbaum, are impossible to forget.
Even in Russia where alcoholism is a national scourge and - to say so - national art's topic - there are not many movies that shows with such vividness and strenghth all the hell and total chaos and insanity of the life of a alco-path. You must see this man, his flat which looks like Hell landscape and his doings that are caricature and horrible at the same time - REALLY horrible since that man ends violating moral law...
This film will tear your heart out. You will laugh at times and at the same time gasp in horror.