recommended

Perfect cast and a good story

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Let me try to explain why Deja vu is one of my favorite movies ever. In the opening shots, while the credits still run across the screen, most movies will show some boring landscape. Or a hero traveling and thinking (or rather pretending to think). Deja vu starts with a scene with 4 nested meanings! As you might know, in the opera "Carmen" the soldiers shoot Carmen's lover. But all opera-goers know this is entertainment, so they don't really kill him. (SPOILER START) But in Deja Vu, the assassin is hired to kill the singer, so at the moment when the actors playing soldiers shoot him on the scene, the assassin shoots from a real gun, so the singer is killed for real!(SPOILER END) But you know it's all happening within a movie, so he's not really dead! A modern philosopher could write several thick volumes on this phenomena of nested meanings alone, but what does the director do? Throws it away, as this whole scene is just there to introduce us to the main character's profession. This is the way the whole movie is done - there is a plot, but it's full of twists, laughs and jokes on everybody and everything. You don't care much for the assassin or his target, but how can you forget the Hitler-lookalike German bike coach? Or the heroes answer to the question about his interests ("jazz, box and sex")? A scene that spoofs the famous Eisenstein's "Bronenosets Potyomkin"? It's a farce for farce's sake, and it makes you literally roll on the floor laughing.

The joint Polish-Soviet film had to be something very funny and fresh. Indeed, the very theme seems to be very promising - 1923, a police informer runs from Chicago to the Soviet city Odessa, that lies at the Black Sea coast, then, the killer is sent to murder him. This hapless killer, played by the great Jerzy Stuhr, is met with the strangling Soviet hospitality, he is mistaken with the famous scientist, he is in the series of the extremely funny gags, and finally he fails to commit his job. The play of the Russian film stars is also great - Nikolay Karachentsov plays a mafia bootlegger, and the untimely demised Viktor Stepanov plays a noisy Ukrainian farmer, also, the small role of Cesare Pazura as a German bicyclist is also great. But in general, the film is far too long, too banal often and the unnecessary nudity scenes and pointless musical interludes make it a half-hearted job.

It is a movie that shows the fact that comedy was born in Odessa. Even when you are dealing with assassins you can make a funny movie if you are doing it in Odessa. Odessa is a self-proclaimed (deservedly so!) capital of humor. Second only to the city holiday of the city's founding (September 2, 1794) is the citywide celebration of April 1st with the annual "Yumorina" (Humor Day). In 1988 (or 1987) when the movie was being made, I used to live near the round building that is used in the movie as the "Bakery" in which the Informer is hiding out. I used to see the crew making this film, but had no idea what this film was or if I will ever see it. About ten years later, when living in America, I rented this film not knowing anything about it. Seeing Odessa again was a treat in itself. But then I saw the scenes near the "Bakery" and almost fell off my chair!!! I have seen this film being made!!! It was an incredible experience. September 2nd is approaching. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ODESSA!!!!

This movie deserves to be recognized. It is an original comedy spoofing the early years of the Soviet empire, with all their grotesque and pretentiousness. It is a story of an American killer-for-hire, who is sent by the Mafia to kill an informer. Out of all places, the informer is hiding in the newly Soviet Russia. The killer is mistaken for the well-known scientist traveling around the world, so the Soviet bureaucracy kicks in the high gear, determined to show off the new wonderful Russia for the famous foreign 'scientist'. With all the attention and constant companionship of one over-zealous Soviet tour guide (a hilarious turn by an unknown Russian actress), the killer gets in all these ridiculous situations just to follow up on his contract. In turn, the informer knows that the mob guys are after him and decides to strike first. In short, it is a never ending situational romp with funny one liners that I remember to this day (even though I saw it when I was a child growing up in Russia).Now, I don't think this movie is available with subtitles, so you've got to know your Russian before you see it. You won't be sorry - the actors are superb (especially the Polish actor, who also appeared in 'Novie Amazonki'), the script is smart and funny as hell, and the early years of Soviet Empire have never looked so ridiculous as in this film.