Ryzanov is a master cardsharper. If you want to promote jazz to USSR, give this job to Ryazanov, and he will make it so in his movies, that the only alternative to glowing jazzy number is a "Life on Mars" lecture, the only alternative to gay clown number is pensioner's orchestra, and so on. For this habit of his "Karnavalnaya noch" leaves a bitter aftertaste, like you were double crossed but you can not understand where. For all this con gaming of Ryazanov a main character is made responsible - the new boss in the social culture club. Youths are preparing the cultural program for Happy New Year: songs, dances, numbers. And the new boss has set his task to poke his nose into every point of the program and mostly in the negative and prohibiting way. Finally he comes to conclusion that the program is mostly unacceptable and starts to prepare his own program by inviting quite inappropriate stuff: a scientific lecturer, a pensioner's orchestra, and the like. Youths see that he is going to ruin their Happy New Year and take measures which make the main сomedy of situations part of this movie: the absolutely serious and emotionally cold boss, somewhat nerdy and somewhat old fad, hectic, energetic, inevitable as any newly appointed boss, being tricked and played by youths in the atmosphere of Happpy New Year carnival. Well quite universal comedy situation, if not to pretend to be a social satire. The elements of social satire are thrown in just like you can not but have them, and have no good connection to the major comedy of the movie, quite according to the main hero's motto "And now we need something serious for our program". Bang, and there you are, a 40 minute lecture. Later they made a kind of sequel with the same boss appointed to run a tourist base, and some related characters like same scientific lecturer, the same secretary, same actors, and based it mainly on the social satire, and it was a complete flop that nobody hardly knows about the existence of the sequel. That is a good sigh that the "Karnavalnaya noch"'s message is not a simple sum of plot and action. Anyway an hour and a half of joyful watching and good laughs are guaranteed with "Karnavalnaya noch". The comedy was an instant success in the USSR and remains these days. Enjoy.

I've seen a bunch of the later films of Eldar Ryazanov, and they are often excellent, moving, bittersweet, subtle comedies that manage at the same time to be some measure of social satire as well. This, his first feature, can't quite be that -- it's quite short and bears the responsibility of being a holiday revue as well. Most of the second half actually follows what happens on stage at the New Year show that characters are preparing. So instead of trying to compact more plot in that would comfortably fit, we center on one humorously over-the-top character -- a new boss who has arrived two days before the spectacle and insists on ordering absurdly inartistic changes to every element of it. This gives us the opportunity to see what is in essence a series of very good gags orchestrated around the efforts to work around him, and the couple of sketched-in love stories that are going on. The new boss complains several times that the employees are undermining his authority in the name of their fun -- and he's right about that. It's naturally cathartic and funny to watch the defeat of someone so serious and humorless. Ogurtsov acts as an exaggerated-for-effect of the official line. As we delight in watching him humiliated, the Soviet New Yoear is placed in the old stabilizing holiday role as the one time in the year when things may be reasonably topsy-turvy -- and the role of New Year's as the main, secular, state-sponsored holiday is bolstered. The revue aspects are well-realized in music and choreography, and remind one of similarly spotless musical numbers in big Hollywood films of the forties and fifties. Everything is done with a very enjoyable verve and panache, and Ryazanov demonstrates a great sense of timing with comedy and and ability to tell a lot with a little in the romantic subplots that would serve him well in securing him the breadth to make his later films.

I had read two versions of the pop actress and singer , in Russia at that time,Lyudmila Gurchenko. One story was that his picture was too western and she was scolded for doing it and accused of excepting extra pay for her picture, other than the government wage. She was kicked out of films for years , until the 70's. Then she was recognized.Others An official,of the state cinema photography school made a pass at her and she rejected him so he had her black listed from films a while.After this film she did others. This is a m very modern style type musical for Russia. I had thought that this film was made for distribution in America to try to convince Americans that communism was democratic? No it's just light hearted. The dull head of the ministry of cultures planning a boring new years eve carnival. He's trying to mess it up. But students played by Lyudmilla and the others pep it up. You see Her and the other students ,including a Russian sister act . rehearsing a very jazzy song.She later goes with the culture director to check the other acts. One is an orchestra rehearsing another semi jazz number. He badly criticizes it and insist that they play classics.He approves of the dull ballet dancing,Which later in the film when they keep him locked under the stage ,while the ballet dancers do a jazz number instead. For some reason one of the students disguises himself as an old man to Lyudmila and when she finds out she chases him down until he removes the costume. Two actors quit when the director criticizes the clown act.. Durring the party The students try to prevent the dull director of culture from messing it up. As he about to go on stage and make a dull speech, Ludmila get's one of the magicians to take the speech out of his suite and replace it with magic tricks. This mess up his speech but makes the celebration better.She sings one number behind a big clock and the orchestra around it .The party continues after the 12.Another number the orchestra disguises themselves as old men playing classics , to get into the stage in front of the director. After a few minutes they go wild in their music embarrassing the director.Another number Ludmila does a ice skating singing number with ice skate dancers behind her. One official is gotten drunk ,by Ludmilas boyfriend, That he gets on stage an makes a fool of himself.The party , now way after one, goes well in the end and Ludmila and her boyfriend decide to dance together. She is still a top entertainer today.

Karnavalnaya Noch was the first comedy made by the Russian director Eldar Ryazanov. Filled with music, dances and singing it featured Ludmila Gurchenko in her first role and the renowned stage and film actor Igor Ilyinsky as Ogurtsov, an old-fashioned bureaucrat-stand-in director of the Culture Palace where the team of young people is trying to put together a musical programme to celebrate the New Year's Eve. Sergei Fillipov is particularly funny as a tipsy lecturer who is invited by Ogurtsov to read a lecture about life on Mars on the New Years Eve, and Yuri Belov is good as a shy electrician who is in love with Lena Krylova(Gurchenko) The film is a light "feeling good" viewing, it is ageless and can be watched over and over again.