# Priyatel pokojnika (1997)

### reviewed by
James Berardinelli

    A FRIEND OF THE DECEASED

    A Film Review by James Berardinelli

    RATING: *** OUT OF ****

Ukraine/France, 1997 U.S. Release Date: beginning May 1, 1998 (limited) Running Length: 1:40 MPAA Classification: R (Violence, profanity, mature themes) Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Cast: Alexandre Lazarev, Tatiana Krivitska, Eugen Pachin, Constantin Kostychin, Elena Korikova, Angelika Nevolina, Sergiy Romanyuk Director: Vyacheslav Krishtofovich Producers: Mykola Machenko, Pierre Rival Screenplay: Andrei Kourkov Cinematography: Vilen Kaluta Music: Vladimir Gronski U.S. Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics In Russian with subtitles

Ukrainian film maker Vyacheslav Krishtofovich has used his latest film, A FRIEND OF THE DECEASED (which was one of the five Best Foreign Film nominees for the1998 Oscars), to take a darkly comic look at the current economic and social climate in the former Soviet Union. Krishtofovich is on record as saying that the "human warmth" evident during the height of socialism has been replaced by solitude and self- interest in the new era of freedom. As he says in a prepared Director's Statement: "In Ukrainian, the word 'love' and the word 'pity' are sometimes considered synonyms. That is why I made this film about people whom I pity. And whom I love."

Today in the Ukraine, it's possible to buy and sell almost anything – drugs, sex, booze, and murder. The Black Market is booming, and Kiev's sidestreets are teeming with drug dealers, prostitutes, and contract killers. In this new environment, someone like Anatoli (Alexandre Lazarev), a reserved intellectual who was trained to be a translator in English and French, finds himself without work or self- respect. His wife, a successful advertising executive, is about to leave him for another man, and there's nothing he can do about it. One day, he casually mentions his problems to a friend, Dima (Eugen Pachin), who suggests putting out a hit on his wife's lover. With surprising rapidity, Dima puts Anatoli in contact with Kostia (Constantin Kostychin), who accepts the job over the phone, without meeting his client face-to-face. But, instead of providing Kostia with his wife's lover's description, Anatoli gives the killer a picture of himself, figuring that arranging his own murder offers a quick and painless way out of a dreary life. But, when a tryst with a prostitute (Tatiana Krivitska) re-invigorates Anatoli and causes him to change his mind, it's too late to call off the hit. So, to save his life, Anatoli must hire another contract killer to eliminate the first one.

With a script (by Andrei Kourkov) that combines dark comedy, drama, and suspense, A FRIEND OF THE DECEASED proves to be a fascinating and engaging look at a country in turmoil. The way the story develops, with a number of inventive twists overlaying a typically "Russian" sense of tragedy, conjures up images of the work of Fyodor Dostoevsky as filtered through O. Henry. The screenplay drips with irony as Anatoli, who is an astute-but-ineffectual man, learns to use the mechanics of Ukrainian capitalism to rebuild the life that it was instrumental in destroying.

While most of the film wades through dramatic currents, with occasional swells of satire and grim humor, one extended sequence recalls the suspense of a Hitchcock feature. It occurs when Anatoli is playing the bait in a trap devised by the second killer to catch the first. The problem is that Anatoli has never seen Kostia, and has only a sketchy description of what he looks like. As a result, the possibility exists that Anatoli could accidentally mark an innocent man for death. For about fifteen minutes, Krishtofovich continually ratchets up the tension as Anatoli tries to flush out Kostia before he fulfills his contract.

The only real problem with A FRIEND OF THE DECEASED is that there are occasions when things seem a little overplotted. From time-to-time, the seams of the script show, and we're aware that a character is acting in a certain way because that's what the plot demands. In particular, Anatoli's inability to call off the first contract killer seems like a contrivance. After all, how hard does he really try?

A FRIEND OF THE DECEASED's primary asset is that it offers an insider's perspective of the labyrinthine workings of contemporary Kiev, and how the transition from the old ways to the new ones have overturned the values and shifted the balance of a society. (At one point, a character remarks, "Before we had friendships. Now we have business relationships.") It's a plus that the movie is well-acted, gripping, and populated with enough bizarre twists to keep even a casual viewer involved. Although not a masterpiece, A FRIEND OF THE DECEASED is a strong and worthwhile effort from an acclaimed Ukrainian director.

    Copyright 1998 James Berardinelli

    - James Berardinelli
    e-mail: berardin@mail.cybernex.net

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