Underplayed Gems

The Irony of Fate (1976)

The Irony of Fate poster
Original title
Ирония судьбы, или С легким паром!
Directed by
Eldar Ryazanov
Genre
tragicomedy, romantic comedy film
Country
Soviet Union
Runtime
3h 04m
Rating
7.3 of 10 from 266 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

On New Year's Eve, a man gets drunk with friends and mistakenly ends up in a different city. He uses a key to enter an apartment that looks exactly like his own, and meets the woman who lives there.

romanticwistfulcomedicnostalgiccharmingserendipitousbittersweetwhimsical

What happens

The Irony of Fate, or Enjoy Your Bath!, usually shortened to The Irony of Fate, is a 1976 Soviet romantic comedy television film directed by Eldar Ryazanov and starring Andrey Myagkov, Barbara Brylska, Yury Yakovlev, and Lyubov Dobrzhanskaya. The screenplay was written by Emil Braginsky and Ryazanov, loosely based on the director's 1971 play, Once on New Year's Eve (Russian: Однажды в новогоднюю ночь). Filmed at the Mosfilm Studios, The Irony of Fate doubles as a screwball comedy and a love story tinged with sadness. It was one of the most successful Soviet television productions and remains a highly popular New Year's Eve classic in Russia and the post-Soviet states, with millions tuning in to rewatch it every New Year's Eve. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

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