which is a decent debut for young yuri bykov. he has made a few films after this and all the films by bykov are easily available for all those who understand Russian without subtitles. i expected an intense thriller after having read the critics and other reviews but eventually i got a little disappointed. everything is of course there that makes the movie to work within generic conventions: a breathtaking chase, gradual emotional bonding of two totally different men, existential anxiety and fear of death (surprise!), gun fights and shootings where an innocent bystander gets killed and the climax where the other protagonist must make an unbearable moral decision. the decision to the dilemma is the only real twist in the plot - otherwise there are no big unpredictable surprises on the way.so all the necessary and essential elements are there but still i could not help feeling a bit bored watching zhit (literally live!) (the running time is about 70 mins). perhaps i am too old, perhaps i demand more even for this kind of simple genre. that the film is Russian is not so big a bonus that makes it absorbing or mesmerizing if it is a text- book script. it is not completely zhit if you change z for s. to sum up: it is no extraordinary breakthrough in Russian cinema, instead there is much old, little new, much borrowed and a bit of blue (especially if you love dogs).by the way, what is this "steve kilbey" poster doing here??? wake up people!

The actors will not get Academy awards, but if you stick with the movie, it becomes interesting and you forget the weak acting.Soon after the chubby man hunts, there is shouting and a rush to hurry up and save a man from pinging bullets. From then on, the movie moves up and down, slow and fast, like riding a roller coaster.There are some intense movements between the hunter and the gang member, and a very troubling treatment of a dog that some might find too intense (but keep in mind, it is a movie and not reality). This scene and other hate/like each other scenes are crucial to understanding the ending.The best part comes at the end, which takes the movie from a 6 to an 8 out of 10.And, the mild profanity is tolerable and unlike so many movies that turn to filth in every frame.