Magicians (1982 TV Movie) User Reviews

Great movie for New Year's Eve or a lazy Sunday afternoon

[bgrot · 8/10 · 28 July 2007]

Yes, the movie is not at all faithful to the book. Yes, it has a cheesy plot, low-budget cinematography and 19th century special effects. But none of these things can take away from the charm of this picture. The acting is simple and the actors are adorable (young Abdulov rocks!). Many of the lines from the movie have since become everyday phrases (eg: "Nu ktozh tak stroit!") and several of the songs immortal ("Pesenka pro kostyumchik," "Tri Belix Konya"). And the sentimental value of the good ol' Soviet rudeness and bureaucracy is immeasurable.

If you understand Russian, have spent any time in USSR, and love fairy tales for adults, you'll love this movie.

Decent new year musical

[nataliabatsko · 7/10 · 3 July 2022]

Soviet films are probably the best ones that were made in Russia. And today I'm talking about one of them.

Wizards (Charodei) is set in a magical institute called NUINU during last days of the year. Where everyone prepared for the celebration. Including Alena, who is in love with an average guy Ivan. But Kira Shamacganskya, the principal of the institute, is upset that Alena has a crush on him, because Kira assumes that she tries to steal her lover. So, since she's a witch, she casts a frozen heart spell. And afterwards, Alena turns into a cold hearted woman, who likes to insult colleagues. The only way to break the spell, is for Ivan to kiss her until the new year starts.

The plot seems to be like a romantic office movie, but with fairy tale stuff being added to the mix. One of the issues that the movie has is that it can be boring for the kids to watch. Yes, it does have some things like spells, wands, Skatert Samobranka (magic table carpet that makes food out of nowhere), and other fantasy elements. But they aren't as prominent as you expect to be. And if you take them out, then the movie would be slightly different, but mostly the same. Like I said, it's not really a kids film, but rather for teenagers and young adults. Luckily, it doesn't have any adult content, so it's still safe for young ones to watch it. The reason why it's for older ones is simply because of the plot more targeted to them. Now, out of the way, I'd like to stay that for the most part it's enjoyable, but can get boring a bit. The preparation of the new year and presentation of the magic wand introduces the audience to the world that they would spend time in. And after Alena's cursed, they would root for Ivan to get to the destination point as fast as possible.

Since this is a musical, it has a lot of songs obviously. Probably the best ones belong to Alena, in both nice and mean personalities. And my favorite has to the witch river. It has dumb lyrics, that tell about the crystal clear water that no one should drink, yet it's catchy. Another one by her is the Women's secret, which is about each woman having some kind of a secret that makes her special. It's a pretty lyrical song. I also liked the villains' song by Kira and the love song by Ivan. Both describe the mood of the characters and their desires. However, the ones performed by Ivan's young sister Nina are the most forgettable ones. The three white horses isn't really special, but still ok. I actually disliked the snowflake song, and it's my least favorite. Because I disliked the vocals, that were too high pitched and the lyrics were lame. It's just about a snowflake and the new year wish making. It's pretty cliche. Others like time to sleep, centaurs, don't believe and serenade were good and enjoyable.

The characters were mostly great. I especially liked Kira, who is a witch that wants to control the institute and make things her own way. She reminds me of Serafim Ogurcov from the Carnival night, she's kinda like his female witch counterpart. She's mostly calm, yet still evil in her way. Alena is a character that in the beginning was like a teenage girl, that would dream about love, but after a curse, she becomes more mean and annoyed. I like how the sudden contrast shows us how Alena was before and her new self. She seems to also be a cheater as well, where she flirts with a co-worker Sataneev, who had a crush on Alena. I liked both her sides to be honest. And I liked that there's still a nice version of her when she's asleep and dreaming. Ivan is the hero that has to save the day or in this case an entire year. All he needs to do is to kiss Alena. He has to go through different obstacles to do so, even if he doesn't believe in them in the beginning. He's a good character, because you actually root for him and sometimes even want to help him go through them. I also liked one running gag character that was a tourist who couldn't find the exit throughout the movie. Which was funny. But there's one character that I disliked a lot, and it's Nina. Like I mentioned before, she's Ivan's younger sister and she actually got on my nerves. Anyways, Nina was annoying, because she wanted to help Ivan, yet not knowing about the dangers. What's worse is that, she's mostly a pointless character, you can easily replace her with some other character like maybe an animal sidekick or nothing will change. I guess she was created only for the kids so they could associate themselves with, which is a pretty stupid reason, since it makes no sense. And like I said, her songs were the worst, but not terrible, which means mediocre. Other characters were ok, but not really memorable. Sateneev is a flirting type, there were two assistants that could teleport to various locations, and were the typical comedic duo. And that's it.

Finally, the movie itself was made well. Like the special effects and locations. The places include the institute, the winter forest and a isbushka. All of them look convincing and creative. And thanks to the new year atmosphere both the movie and the musical numbers look more fun and colourful to make the whole experience more enjoyable.

Wizards isn't exactly a must watch, since it's plot is not too enjoyable for young audience, it had an annoying side character that served little to no purpose, and some songs weren't great. It still has good elements like the main characters such as Ivan, Alena and Kira, some great songs too and an actually decent plot. This is for all the Soviet movie and musical fans out there. And make sure to turn the movie during new year, cause it's a perfect time to do so. As for myself, then I enjoyed the film enough, though I wish I could add and remove some elements to make it better.

Beautiful, funny and very clever

[TheLittleSongbird · 10/10 · 25 August 2013]

Even if you are not Russian yourself, or speak little of it, you might find yourself captivated by Charodei. Being on a roll watching Russian cinema, especially fantasy, and also studying Russian as part of my vocal studies music degree, Charodei certainly was captivating for this viewer. It looks beautiful, especially the snowy scenery in the second half of the film, and the mix of Russian fantasy elements and the modern world were intriguingly and lovingly juxtaposed. The music is nice and quirky, fitting well with the tone of the film, while the songs are catchy and very Russian(I for one love Russian songs). Particularly good is the song about the three horses, apparently the songs were hits back in 1982 and if so for very good reason. The dialogue is snappy and quotable, with subtitles for the non-Russian viewer it's easier to understand but the facial expressions and the acting give you an indication of what is being said. You have got to love the surnames of the characters too, very clever. The story is told in a very charming way. As well as having great mystical fantasy elements, Charodei works wonders too as a romantic comedy. The romance is sweet without being cloying, and the comedy is genuinely very funny. The characters are endearing, and the acting showcases actors that are as comfortable at comedy as they are in drama as well. Overall, beautiful, funny and very clever film. If you wish to see Charodei if you haven't already the whole film's on Youtube but under the Russian-phonetics-alphabet title. 10/10 Bethany Cox

The right film to watch on a New Year Eve.

[hope-35 · 14 August 2000]

This is a movie loosely based on the novel written by the Strugatsky brothers "Monday Begins on Saturday". It`s pretty far from the original text and that`s why all Russian SF fans are not happy with. But the script is also written by the Strugatskys, so I think it`s fair to write a new story rather than use the existed one. If one can "forget" about the book while watching this movie it is fairly witty, funny and kind love story. The songs became hits back in 1982. The cast is wonderful, basically every face you see in this movie is a famous actor or actress. Most of the cast are brilliant dramatic or character actor/actress. There are also lots of Soviet lifestyle in-jokes, which you understand only if you are a Russian over 15 years old (the younger ones don`t remember the Soviet reality). The movie is worthy a watch.

A great movie for anyone trying to understand the "mysterious Russian soul"

[evgeniy77 · 9/10 · 2 September 2005]

I love this movie for the fact that they treat all ancient Russian fairy tale elements in a modern context. A great pun is made in the last names of the characters---all are variations on terms and names of the magical and the mystical. Also it is a great romantic comedy. Many of the quotes from this film stay with you for a lifetime. I especially love the song in the film about the three white beautiful horses named December, January and February that carry your sled off into the beauty of Her Majesty Winter. You can put it on the shelf for the classic Soviet New Year's Eve romantic comedies, such as "Ironiya sud'by ili "s legkim parom!"" and "Karnaval'naya noch'". I was also pleasantly surprised when I found out that it was made by the Odessa Film Studios---my city of birth.

modern musical Christmas fairy tale

[akoumare · 9/10 · 10 January 2003]

This movie is a modern fairy tale. The story happens in an institute of magic during Christmas time. the girl (Alena) is supposed to marry to Ivan. However, an envious person makes to think to her boss that Alena is in love with the boy friend of the boss in question, who decides to bewitch Alena. The only way to save her is to be kissed by Ivan. I liked this movie because of the humorous way of presenting the intrigue. It is amusing and refreshing. The dialogs and expressions are funny.

Ordinary story in an unusual institute or Save love before the New Year

[lyubitelfilmov · 10/10 · 21 December 2020]

Musical comedy. A free adaptation of the story "Monday Starts on Saturday" by Soviet and Russian science fiction writers, the Strugatsky brothers, who were responsible for the script here and revised their original source, so acquaintance with the story is not required to view this masterpiece of Soviet cinema. I heard many great reviews about this picture, and my family and in general strongly recommended me to see it, and this time I could not resist - and was again pleasantly surprised. And here's my brief opinion - Save love before the New Year. I did not find any flaws in the picture, but this cynical and picky brute who writes these lines has remarks that he will express in a separate paragraph, but for now he will focus your attention on the expressive merits of this musical comedy. So, here they are: 1. The story told - in a world where magic, Russian folk traditions, coexists with the real world, the most common story takes place - deceit destroys love, and Alyonushka forgets her beloved Ivanushka. Injustice! Meanness! It is necessary to rectify the situation, because soon the New Year is the time when the most unrealizable dreams come true. That's right - a love story awaits us again, which must overcome many obstacles, both from real life and magical, which complicates the task. Friends will help Ivan in this. It is not worth spreading about the finale, because who has not watched it - look, and if you watched it, then you already know everything, and reconsider it again (where are you going!). I was completely delighted with the story, and was looking forward to the denouement and enjoying the acting of the whole galaxy of talents that is in this picture. If you are tired of a banal love story - then you definitely come here! 2. Cat - just don't laugh, I really liked the cat and I included him in the list of the picture's advantages. Why? Firstly, he is voiced by Georgy Vitsin (although most of the material did not make it into the final version of the picture), and secondly, he has a smooth coat with a smooth coat, and he looks impressive. And it will still play its role in history. 3. Songs - "Three white horses", "A song about a snowflake", "Witch-river", "A song about a suit" - I heard these songs many times in everyday life, but only now I found out where they came from, and why they found such a nationwide love, if even after forty years (let's round up) people sing them. I was completely delighted with both this discovery and the songs themselves. Simple words, great rhyme, great actors and singers. 4. Humor - since we called ourselves "comedy", then laugh - and it succeeded. Maybe jokes and funny situations here do not shine with philosophical meaning and partly originality, but to say that they do not work is to lie to people and to yourself. In a couple of moments he laughed out loud, the rest - a slight smile and short chuckles. The humor here rather serves as an addition to the story. 5. Wonderful actors - Tatiana Vasilyeva, Valery Zolotukhin, Emmanuil Vitorgan, Semyon Farada, Mikhail Svetin, and I did not list all of them. Since such mastodons were called, then the picture of the opriore should not have failed. A theater school is a theater school! Real masters of transformation play here. A little about the main characters: 1. Alena (Alyonushka) Sanina performed by Alexandra Yakovleva - an employee of the Scientific Universal Institute of Extraordinary Services (abbreviated as NUINU), who was supposed to marry Ivanushka, but cunning and witchcraft confused these plans. Now she is a predator and a careerist, or in Russian a bitch who must be saved as soon as possible. Alexandra was delightful in this role, especially the song "River Witch". 2. Ivan (Ivanushka) Pukhov is an ordinary Moscow guy who loves Alyonushka and is ready to do everything for her that he has to prove in order to cast a spell on his beloved and as soon as possible. Kind, sensitive, bold and a little reckless, Alexander turned out to be a hero, but so attractive that it is impossible to forget. Bravo! 3. Apollo Sataneev performed by Valentin Gaft is a high-ranking employee of NUINU who wants to get to the very top of the institute. An opportunist, a gossip, a scoundrel, an insidious tempter, drying up Alyonushka. From the very first appearance in the frame, it evokes extremely bad emotions. The remarkable and talented Soviet and Russian actor Valentin Iosifovich Gaft, who left us quite recently (the Earth rest in peace to him and the Kingdom of Heaven), played here the role of a scoundrel careerist and opportunist, of whom there were plenty then and now. The image is bright and memorable. Bravo Valentin Iosifovich! Bravo! Bravo! Now about the comments (how dare he !?): a chaotic beginning, from which nothing is clear and what to expect from the picture. At first I was confused and thought that I was mistaken with the choice of the picture, but soon my suspicions were dispelled. The rest of the songs, with the exception of the above, I did not like, well, not at all. Excuse me, I say it as it is. The picture, and although I looked at the restored version, the picture is not perfect, and in moments of magic it hurts the eye. And you can close your eyes to this. Well, you can live with it! And once again I am convinced that a woman should not be a leader, except as a household, because extreme emotionality, although quickly passing, can do a lot of misfortunes. As a result, we have an excellent musical comedy based on the story of the Strugatsky brothers, with an excellent script, great humor, magnificent songs and wonderful and unique acting works! My rating is 10 out of 10 and my recommendation for viewing!