Shit!
Why are you here so late?
Forgot the keys.
Here they are.
I had to come back almost all the way from home.
And why are you here?
I have an interesting reason for this.
So he was in jail.
Exactly.
Moscow, 1959.
Donskoy Monastery, please.
It’s just around the corner.
My girlfriend is waiting. I’m late already!
OK, hop in.
Thanks a lot.
No need to turn it on.
It’s less than one klick. We don’t need this meter.
Are you starting your shift or finishing?
You’ll be my last passenger.
OK, no problem.
Slow it down! Pull over at the corner.
OK.
Here.
Thanks.
Captain Afanasiev,
Department Against Misappropriation of Socialist Property.
STAR MEDIA PRESENTS
Sergey Makovetsky
Mikhail Porechenkov
Maria Shukshina
Daria Mikhailova
Yulia Persild
Yevgenia Simonova
Vladimir Simonov, Igor Chernevich, Vladimir Afanasiev
In Trouble in Store
Script by Vladislav Romanov and Yevgenii Latii
With the participation of Sergey Ashkenazi
Production Director: Sergey Ashkenazi
Cameraman: Vladimir Klimov R.G.C.
Music by Aleksey Ashkenazi
Production Designer: Iraida Shultz Costume Designer: Regina Khomskaya
Makeup Artist: Olga Matveichuk
Editing Directors: Olga Grinshpun and Ekaterna Kirillova
Sound Producer: Pavel Podlesny Casting Director: Tatiana Statzman
Executive Producer: Andrey Anokhin
Producers: Vitalii Bordachev and Vlad Ryashin
For three rubles beyond the meter he had to serve 18 months.
All his war decorations didn’t help him.
They didn’t. He was married,
but the taxi company wouldn’t take him back.
So he started working as a loader at a food store,
and it became a breakthrough for him. A blessing in disguise.
Why are we at him in the first place?
OK, he’s a director and a thief — no big deal.
Don’t you see it?
Pasha, this is not our cup of tea. It’s breaking a fly on the wheel.
I don’t question orders from above. I follow them.
Shit, I forgot to call home.
I can do it. I’ll tell them you’re in the woods,
lying in wait for a paratrooper spy.
Very funny. Give me a cigarette.
I’ve been there. You always end up with a divorce.
My mother-in-law was adding fuel to the fire all the time.
I once brought her those beautiful calla lilies. Guess what?
She said I wanted her dead!
Well, callas are for funerals.
I didn’t know that! My intent was pure.
She wasn’t that much mistaken, though.
Why don’t you call her? You won’t be home till 4 AM.
She’s probably asleep already. I’ll come back, wake her up,
mumble something about work.
What is it today, 14th?
Right.
It’s Masha’s birthday!
I have to call her before she leaves to work.
What are you waiting for?
I don’t know what to say.
You should say, happy birthday, baby!
I’m thinking about you every single minute.
You entered my life and made me happy.
I love you.
I can’t live without you.
Come back or I’ll die.
Why would she come back if she never left?
It’s just a figure of speech.
What a weird figure.
Never mind.
Maria Viktorovna, good morning.
Morning, Anton.
Happy birthday. I have something for you.
Chanel No.5? I can’t take it.
I though you’d be glad. You don’t like Chanel, do you?
I do, but I can’t take anything from students.
Besides, it’s against the rules.
Bulls! Why can’t a student give something to a woman he…
OK. You don’t like it? I’ll throw it out.
Anton! Wait.
OK, fine. Just promise me: no more expensive gifts.
No more gifts, period.
I promise.
Chanel No. 5. Where did you get it?
It doesn’t’ matter. What matters is that you like it.
Yes.
By the way, you were the first to greet me today.
She probably left.
Of course. Morning classes.
Excuse me! Please let me pass! Niura!
You’re late again.
Hi!
They didn’t let Vera Ivanovna go.
To hell with her.
Morning.
What’s this?
I think she can’t handle the main hall.
Morning, morning.
Are we out of the sturgeon?
I put the rest aside for the food parcels, 500 kilos.
We have many orders.
Return half of it to the counters.
We don’t want them to nag at us because of those orders.
Yes, Georgy Petrovich.
Hello.
Happy birthday, Katerina. We wish you good luck,
sound health and successful work. Here is our modest gift.
Thanks.
And a bonus.
Thank you.
Thanks a lot, Georgy Petrovich.
We’ll have a tea party during the lunch break.
Everybody is invited.
We’ll be there. Please fix the window.
Of course.
Morning. Why isn’t the cap starched?
I’ve reported the laundress already. No result.
Good morning. Hello.
Open the door, we are starting now!
‒ Nikolay Ivanovich. ‒ Yes?
‒ Can I have a second? ‒ What’s up?
It’s about Vera Anilina. How can we help her?
OK, she made a mistake. Hiding this stupid money here,
being led by her husband… She’s a good an honest person.
But she’ll destroy herself, being so inexperienced.
Her two kids will become orphans!
We could certify for her character. You know, team spirit…
What the hell? What can we possibly say in her defense?
There are facts. Illicit possession of foreign currency. Right?
Right, but…
No buts. Grishin is doing something…
You’re trying to protect her,
and she is probably ratting on us as we speak!
I told you she doesn’t know much.
They don’t need much to file a case against us…
Against you?
No, dear, against us!
It’s not easy but it’s possible.
Can I go, Comrade Major?
Yes.
Have you considered my offer?
Yes.
What’s your decision?
I’m ready to tell you everything!
I just don’t know what to tell.
OK, why don’t you sit down? Let me refresh your memory.
How about surplus of goods at your store?
Did you have any?
We did.
Where did they come from?
Well…
Vera Ivanovna, I don’t want to drag it out of you.
If you want to save yourself, go ahead!
A couple years ago we purchased Finnish refrigerators
with powerful freezers.
With the old fridges, food used to get spoilt soon.
We would write it off.
There is a certain rate for loss of weight, spoilage etc.
Now we have brought it down almost to zero.
Also, Georgy Petrovich is so efficient,
and our store is so popular. The turnover is great.
We sell perishables in two days.
Also, we have catering service.
So, the losses were brought down to zero.
Yes.
Did they cut down your natural wastage rate?
No.
How big it was?
20%…
It doesn’t take a great economist to sum it all up.
Where did the money go?
There were losses still. We would be delivered spoiled goods;
there were incidental expenses; we order uniforms for the staff.
These are trifles.
I know what Berkutov’s major expenses were.
Bribing the Trade Administration. Trade, as you call them.
Also, other authorities.
I don’t know about that! If you know everything,
what do you need my statement for?
Pardon the banality, but I’m the one asking questions.
You want me to confirm something I don’t know about.
Something you are not sure about. It’s not fair.
That’s rich coming from you! Keeping foreign money,
acquired illegally by your husband,
in your office safe box — was that fair?
I have admitted my guilt and gave up that money.
Of course we need order. But there are limits!
The Beriozka store director was arrested — fine!
But why arrest his wife?
Why hold her responsible for her husband’s crimes?
Maybe she was stealing together with her husband.
No, Leonid Ilyich. She never worked with him.
She worked honestly at some other place.
She and this Anilin are in fact almost divorced.
He deceived her and planted something in her office.
And she had a bad luck to work for Berkutov.
So that’s what it’s all about.
Exactly. They arrested her to get evidence against Berkutov.
This honest and loyal man!
Are you sure?
I see the situation inside out.
Another shot, Leonid Ilyich?
OK.
Comrade Grishin.
Yes.
He is concentrating on Moscow
as if the capital was some thieves’ lair.
You don’t like Andropov. Admit it.
It’s him who doesn’t like me.
All his actions against Moscow trade sector are aimed at me.
Why? Is this my reward for all these years of selfless labor?
That’s not good, Leonid Ilyich.
Don’t worry, Viktor. He will soon move to the Staraya Square
and become Foreign Secretary.
He will have enough on his plate without you.
Admit it, there’s too much theft around.
They steal from our people, and they need dealing with.
Yes, but they shouldn’t touch our people.
I agree with that.
Cheers, Leonid Ilyich.
Your friend is becoming a skinflint, Georgy Petrovich.
He only gave me half-tank today, and bad gas at that.
You hear this rattling? I don’t understand this.
We have more oil than anyone; why there’s no gas?
Half-tank, you say?
OK, we’ll give them half of their food parcel today.
Pull over at this house.
Hello. Mr. Director?
Shall I bring him here or will you come in?
Look who’s here! To what do I owe this honor?
You’re just in time for our new arrivals.
Have you got Bosch yesterday?
That’s why I’m here. Cultural standards are going up, Leva!
My wife wants another copy. Can you get it?
Sure. Even if I couldn’t,
I would paint another Garden of Earthly Delights for you.
Come on.
I’m in a hurry. Wrap it up for me,
and I’ll go to the Economy Department for a sec.
OK, I’ll have it wrapped for you.
Eva?
Moscow 1960
Hi.
Haven’t you got my letter?
Letter? No. Only a New Year’s postcard. Nothing after that.
I wrote to you about it.
There was a copy of the divorce certificate inside, too.
What certificate? What divorce?
I divorced you, Georgy. You can do it in absentia,
if your husband is in jail. I fell in love with another man.
I married him a month ago.
Funny that you didn’t get the letter.
You fell in love with… What about me?
Nonsense. We love each other!
You were waiting for me; I was counting days!
And what about our son?
Ivan has adopted him. He’s a good man, a party member.
He’s a very kind person. He can give Kostia everything.
I thought you understood and agreed with me.
The child shouldn’t suffer. He needs a clean start.
You know how people are about those who have family in jail.
It would be a stigma for his whole life.
You have to understand.
Don’t ruin our lives, please.
We have to do this for our son. He has to be happy!
Will you stand in his way?
You mean you don’t need to be happy.
No. And you will be very happy, I promise.
That night I cried for the first time in my life.
I never cried at war or in jail. But this…
And I was crying all night.
So you are the famous Eliseyevsky store director.
Famous? Why?
The food magician, the king of goods that are hard to get.
That’s what people say.
People say many stupid things.
Aren’t you going to ask me about our son?
Why? You did everything to make me forget him.
I hope he’s happy, following your plan.
The plan wasn’t mine. My parents made me do this.
They threatened to stop supporting me. I panicked.
Not for myself — for Kostia. So I gave you up.
I betrayed you.
I’ve been despising myself for this for 20 years.
Ivan divorced me a year after your return. I didn’t love him.
He saw that and left me. I didn’t try to stop him,
although he was a nice man.
He helped us finding an apartment and gave us money.
So you don’t want to know anything about your son.
I do.
He came back from the army a year ago and tried to enroll in the med school.
It’s not easy.
The competition is great, and there are bribes…
So he failed.
He’s working as a paramedic on an ambulance.
Don’t think that I’m asking for help.
We’ve learned to survive in all these years. We’re fine.
What is his last name?
Yefanov. Ivan adopted him, you know.
Does he know about me?
No. I wanted to tell him but couldn’t find heart.
I was ashamed. He loves me and respects me. I couldn’t do it.
You understand? I couldn’t.
Don’t feed them! I already did.
When?
Today.
Right, it was yesterday.
Nobody answers the phone?
I’m trying to reach the department.
They’re probably partying like crazy.
No, they don’t celebrate birthdays.
Wakes are another thing, though.
Go home; buy some flowers, a cake, a bottle of wine
and wait for her. Play some good music when she comes.
OK, OK. I’m going, I’m going.
Anton, you’re so sweet! Honestly, this is too much.
It’s your day, Maria Viktorovna.
People have champagne when they celebrate.
Just half an hour! Please.
There’s this great caf? around the corner.
I want to be with your on your birthday.
Please stop it!
OK. Just one glass. Promise me.
I promise.
Are you going to work or on a break?
To work. Are you moving to the new house?
In two weeks, Georgy Petrovich.
And then the wedding?
I’m not sure.
Why? Are you having cold feet or second thoughts?
Second thoughts.
Well, think about it, Kolia.
To you, Maria Viktorovna. Happy birthday.
Why are you looking at me like this?
I don’t know. Can I be honest with you?
No.
I think you lack something.
Maybe, care or attention.
You look so confident and independent,
but sometimes you’re so defenseless and touching.
It happens to all of us.
Is it good or bad?
It’s great. When you’re like this, I feel that you need me.
Maybe not me, but somebody…
I have this somebody. My husband.
You forget that I’m married.
I don’t forget anything. I’m not drunk yet.
Yes. And I’m a little dizzy. I feel so at ease and so good.
But this isn’t right.
What isn’t right?
Everything. Me sitting here with you, drinking…
Everything is right. You know why?
Because I love you.
You’re drunk.
Yes. But it’s not the wine.
On the face of it, it’s no big deal.
In 1959 he took money from passenger without meter.
So he had served his 18 months for it.
Exactly: on the face of it. That’s how it starts.
So our guy had been a thief even in his salad years.
Then in jail he had polished his skills, and what we have now?
A scam! A high profile thief. Good work, though.
We need to figure out a way to catch the criminal red-handed.
He’s not a criminal yet.
Leave these subtleties for your UN reports.
I want to have an investigative action plan by tomorrow.
Yes sir!
Hello. Yes, Ignatiy Fiodorovich.
That’s right.
Yes, Anilina is involved in the Beriozka case.
No, no other investigations against her.
Berkutov? Why?
I see. Where does this information come from?
No, I don’t insist. I’m just curious.
Of course I will check it out and contact you immediately.
Goddamn it!
Anatoliy Vasilievich, what’s wrong?
Take a seat.
We have a mole, that’s what’s wrong.
And he’s ratting us out to the City Committee.
Who might it be?
You don’t trust me, do you?
You wouldn’t be here if I didn’t. But somebody is doing it.
The Committee knows that we are interested in Berkutov
and are pressing Anilina to witness against him.
Who did interrogate her, apart from you?
There is a detective assigned for her case.
Bondariev. I know. I trust him. He works on the Beriozka case;
he doesn’t mess with other things.
What about Shirshov and Bokov?
What do they know about our game with Anilina?
I never told them anything about the conditions.
But I did point them toward Berkutov. People cannot work in the dark.
And I can’t control them, either.
There’s a special department for that.
I know. I also know they are good people, especially Bokov.
But still, there is a mole! Grishin’s man called.
He asked me to steer away from Berkutov.
He was delicate but persistent.
You see what powers are at play? And how much they value him
if they panic about this bloody Anilina’s arrest!
You want to slow it down?
On the contrary. Speed it up. But in secret!
Otherwise, Grishin will take the heat off Berkutov
and thus off himself.
And we don’t know who’ll be in this chair then.
Andropov or this Grishin, rotten to the bone.
Who know what would happen to the country then!
So, you got me. Speed it up, but in secret.
There’s no such case. Not for anybody but us.
And figure out this mole for me, Pasha. As soon as you can.
Thank you.
Liusia, what are you waiting for?
For you to notice me.
I notice you.
As a woman, not as a secretary.
OK, I notice you as a woman.
Do you like what you see?
What’s not to like?
Then I’ll tell you. Just don’t interrupt me! I love you.
I love you since my first day at work.
I know you don’t need this,
with Lidia Aleksandrovna working here and all.
One more second! I have to tell you this.
You can fire me but you can’t stop me from loving you.
Now, finish your tea. I have work to do.
Oh God…
You want to see Georgy Petrovich? He’s in his office.
You’re not as stupid as I thought. Way to go!
You heard me?
Let’s make a deal. I forget what I heard,
and you forget all about it. Deal?
Deal.
Roman Fiodorovich!
My darling! I greet you on behalf of the Soviet cinema.
Zoya, let me kiss your hand.
What a pleasure!
Liusia, your peachy cheek!
Hello.
How is our maestro?
Georgy Petrovich is in his office.
Great.
Georgy!
Hello.
Hi.
Hello.
Come in.
No, I didn’t come for sturgeon today. I brought you an invitation.
You shouldn’t Roman. You could have sent it with a courier.
I was going to, but then I thought, I come in person for my sirloin;
why do I send somebody with the invitation?
That’s no good at all. So, here.
It’s for Mikhail Kazakov’s premiere. He gives you his best.
Tomorrow the whole beau monde will be there.
So, we’ll be expecting you and Lidia.
Thank you, Roman.
Liusia, thanks.
I see you have no problems with the personnel.
We’re doing our best.
Generals are good at this, Georgy.
I bet.
Your order, Vladimir Mikhailovich.
You’re spoiling me, Georgy. I didn’t order all this.
I added something from myself.
You’re a good man. Call me at any time.
Let’s draft the plan. I think an hour will be enough.
Then I’ll have to go, and you’ll type it. Do it yourself!
No typists. The Berkutov case goes underground.
Please never mention it again. We’re friends.
Is this so bad?
OK, Maria Viktorovna. You’re probably having a party.
A cake with candles…
Well, it’s my birthday, isn’t it?
We’re here.
Thank you for the presents and champagne.
It was nice of you.
Bye!
By the way, you should brush up on your Belinsky.
You’ll have to pass your midterms, even if we are friends.
Belinsky! What a bore. Pisarev, too. What do we need them for?
Because they were great literary critics.
You, as a future journalist, should know them and love them.
I, as a future journalist, love you.
Oh God. Anton, I have to go.
I love Russian literature, too! Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy,
Solzhenitsyn. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich.
It’s a work of genius!
I have to go, Anton.
Pavel.
You have 2 days.
Don’t tell anyone and don’t give it to anybody.
‒ Can you keep silence? ‒ Sure.
Mom, can I come to you now?
Mom, what are you doing here?
We need to talk.
Why can’t we talk at home?
I couldn’t wait.
What happened?
Something that would happen sooner or later.
I saw your father today.
So what? I saw him, too. He was with his wife.
I’m not talking about him, Kostia. I saw your real father.
What do you mean?
Korney, I’m glad you came.
Otherwise I’d have to go to the station.
I can’t figure out this runner.
The gas is bad, that’s why the valves burn out.
Tell me, Georgy, why is this?
We have more oil than any other country.
Why do we sell this shit to our people?
And even that once in a blue moon.
You want to talk politics? I’ll pass.
I live one day at a time. I don’t care about global things.
Tell me why you’re here.
My granddaughter is getting married.
Now we’re talking. Which location, how many guests?
Not many. 30 people. They are all bi shots, though.
Goodbye, Georgy Petrovich.
See you.
Her fiance is a scholar.
2 kilos of sturgeon, 4 of beef sirloin, 5 sticks of saveloy,
2 kilos of cold baked pork, 5 kilos of oranges,
10 cans of mayo, 6 cans of Picton herring,
20 bottles of vodka,
7 bottles of cognac. Is it OK?
Georgy, you’re a monster! You’ve built Communism for yourself.
See you.
I’ll pay for all that, of course. I have some savings.
Don’t even say that.
I want to make the newly weds a present.
Can I do that? The discussion is over.
I can’t take it.
You’ll have to. Helping my friends is my political credo.
It’s the only one I have. Sorry.
Why?
I couldn’t do that, son. I was afraid that you’d hate me.
I would have killed myself if you did. You’re all I have.
Today I suddenly made up my mind.
I can’t live with it anymore.
I loved him
and I betrayed him.
You do what you have to do. I won’t try to defend myself,
even if you decide you don’t want to see me anymore.
It would be only fair.
Go to your father.
There are no barriers between you now.
I made them because of my selfishness.
But now they are down.
Mom, stop it. One can understand this.
But not forgive it.
Hello.
Excuse me, who are you?
I have a message for you. May I?
Easy, easy!
Solzhenitsyn. August 1914.
Who are you?
Excuse me.
KGB