The Diamond Arm (1969)

An ordinary Soviet citizen accidentally intervenes into the huge operation of international criminal group that trades illegally obtained jewelry.

Director:

Leonid Gaidai

Writers:

Moris Slobodskoy (screenplay by), Yakov Kostyukovskiy (screenplay by)

Stars:

Yuriy Nikulin, Nina Grebeshkova, Andrey Mironov

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Yuriy Nikulin	...	Semyon Semyonych Gorbunkov / Senya
Nina Grebeshkova	...	Nadezhda Gorbunkova
Andrey Mironov	...	Gennady Kozodoev
Anatoliy Papanov	...	Lyolik
Stanislav Chekan	...	Captain Mikhail Ivanovich
Vladimir Gulyaev	...	Lieutenant Volodya
Nonna Mordyukova	...	Superintendent
Svetlana Svetlichnaya	...	Anna Sergeyevna
Roman Filippov	...	Man in the Restaurant
Grigoriy Shpigel	...	Main Foreign Smuggler
Leonid Kanevskiy	...	Assisstant Foreign Smuggler
Igor Yasulovich	...	Dog Owner
Maksim Nikulin	...	Boy, 'Walking on Water'
Aleksandra Lisyutina	...	Gorbunkov's Daughter (as Sashenka)
Aleksandr Khvylya	...	Weeping Willow' Maitre dHotel

Storyline

Semyon Gorbunkov goes on a cruise. In Istanbul, he slips and breaks his arm. What he didn't know is that this was a signal for a gang of smugglers (a real smuggler - Gena - was also on board the same ship). So his arm gets bandaged with gold and diamonds. After he returns home, the gangsters are trying to get their stuff back, while the police try to catch them using Gorbunkov and his arm.

---

Plot Keywords:

umbrella | smuggler | switch | man wearing sunglasses | plaster cast | 

---

Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Crime

---

Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

Soviet Union

Language:

Russian

Release Date:

November 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Diamond Arm

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mosfilm

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The director, Leonid Gaidai appears 3 times in the movie playing the drunkard, an old man and the hand in the dream scene.

---

Goofs

During Kozodoev's dream sequence of the arm cast flying around a dark room, the upper body of a person wearing the cast, dressed in black, is visible

---

Quotes

[Cops are carrying a body of a passed out drunk, Gorbunkov thinks he is dead]
Semyon Gorbunkov: I should have been in his place!
Cop: Get drunk, then you will be.

---

Crazy Credits

The summary of the first part of the movie, written in an extremely small and blurry font, races through the screen in a matter of two seconds.

---

Connections

Spoofed in Kremlyovskiy koncert: Den svyatogo valentina (2003)

---

Soundtracks

Pesnya o zaytsakh
("A song about hares")
Written by Aleksandr Zatsepin and Leonid Derbenyov
Performed by Yuriy Nikulin

User Reviews

Better than 'armless

After watching "Brilliantovaya ruka" I can well believe that it's with very good reason that it has such a beloved reputation among Russian language comedies. The vibe it generates it of an extremely high level of breezy fun, and it sustains that with supernatural consistency all the way through.

Combine that with an abundance of simply good jokes drawing from farce, slapstick, and everything in between. The performances are just the right level of broad to pull the maximum number of laughs. The almost constant underscoring perfectly compliments the fact that the pacing is masterfully timed and the fact that all the location filming simply looks fantastic to make this one of the most all-around fun viewing experiences you could imagine.

Moments such as the walking-on-water, the set-up seduction, and the division of the "two parts" are among hilarious moments that also draw in character for their humor and even border somewhat on what might be called "Pythonesque" in style. At the same time, roots in the best of silent comedy, farce, and adventure film are happily evident.

I can easily image how this comedy would reward reviewing, which it evidently for many other commentators here.