Election Day () is a 2007 Russian comedy film directed by Oleg Fomin.

Synopsis

The staff of a successful Moscow radio station are sent into the

Volga region The Volga region, known as the ( , ; rus, Поволжье, r=Povolžje, p=pɐˈvoɫʐje; ), is a historical region in Russia that encompasses the drainage basin of the Volga River, the longest river in Europe, in central and southern European ...

to assist in the promotion of a candidate for the local governor elections. They are assisted by the local theatre director, a fake priest, and their boss' connections.

Cast

Kvartet I Kvartet I (/i/, ) is a Russian theater company founded in Moscow in 1993 by a group of graduates from the Russian Academy of Theatre Arts. Kvartet I also made a few films including ''Election Day''. The founding members of ''Kvartet I'' were: Kam ...

: ** Kamil Larin as Kamil, the electrician ** as Slava, the journalist of the "Kind of radio" ** Aleksandr Demidov as Sasha, the administrator of the "Kind of radio" and the campaign manager ** Leonid Barats as Alex, the journalist of the "Kind of radio" * Vasily Utkin as Igor Vladimirovich Tsaplin, a candidate for Governor of Samara Oblast * Yevgeny Steblov as San Sanych, the director of the Petukhov Russian Regional Drama Theatre * Mikhail Yefremov as "Father Innocent" (in fact con artist Mikhail) * Nonna Grishayeva as Nonna, the host of the "Kind of radio" * as Max, the host of the "Kind of radio" * as Mikhail Natanovich, the general producer of the "Kind of radio" * Yelena Shevchenko as Viktoria, Emmanuil Gedeonovich‘s companion * as Lyolya, Viktoria’s friend * as Anya, Mikhail's lover and secretary * as Yemelyanov, the incumbent Governor of Samara Oblast * as Alexey Paramonov, the

Cossack The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borders of Ukraine and Rus ...

chieftain A tribal chief, chieftain, or headman is a leader of a tribe, tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies There is no definition for "tribe". The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of weste ...

* Valery Barinov as Lieutenant General Ivan Burdun, commander of the "top secret" military base * as Boris, the manager of the liquor producer * as Fedya, Boris's side-kick * as Emmanuil Gedeonovich (voice only) * Alexander Gurevich as Alexey Vitalyevich Alinkin, a candidate for

Governor of Saratov Oblast The Governor of Saratov Oblast () is the Governor (Russia), head of government of Saratov Oblast, a Federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia. The position was introduced in 1991 as ''Head of Administration''. The title of office was ...

* Cameos: **

Andrey Makarevich Andrey Vadimovich Makarevich (; born 11 December 1953) is an Israeli and Soviet-Russian rock musician and the founder of Russia's oldest still active rock band Mashina Vremeni (Time Machine). Personal life Makarevich was born in Moscow to m ...

and Georgy Martirosyan (duo of non-commercial song Two Against The Wind) ** Sergey Shnurov and

Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

(The Innormals) **

Bi-2 Bi-2 is a Belarus, Belarusian alternative rock band, formed in 1988 in Babruysk, Belarusian SSR. During their career, Bi-2 achieved international success in Eastern Europe. Bi-2 was named the Best Rock Act at the MTV Russian Music Awards in 20 ...

(Smoke On The Water) **

Uma2rman Uma2rman (previously ''Umaturman'', ''Uma2rmaH'') is a Russian pop rock band made up of two brothers, Sergei and Vladimir Kristovsky. They have been active since 2003, releasing their first album "V Gorode N" in 2004. Additional musicians have b ...

(UpSideDown) ** Valeriy Syutkin (the band of the furniture store Oliver Twist) ** Seryoga (Nikola Sokol) **

Ivanushki International Ivanushki International (written in Russian as "Иванушки International") is a Russian boy band founded in Moscow in 1994. The band was conceived by record producer Igor Matviyenko, and initially consisted of Andrei Grigoriev-Apol ...

(Ivan and Ushki) ** Chaif (The Volga Bells Duo) **

Dmitry Pevtsov Dmitry Anatolyevich Pevtsov () (born 8 July 1963) is a Russian actor and politician representing the Medvedkovo constituency of Moscow in the State Duma. While elected as an independent in 2021, Pevtsov became a member of the New People poli ...

, Yevgeny Stychkin, Marat Basharov and Oleg Fomin (The Dentists) ** Marianna Maksimovskaya ** Vladimir Kara-Murza Sr. (TV version only)

Reception

Box office

''Election Day'' has grossed US$6 149 746.Election Day
at the

KinoPoisk Kinopoisk (, a portmanteau of "cinema" and "search") is a Russian online database of information related to films, TV shows including cast, production team, biographies, plot summaries, ratings, and reviews. Since 2018 (as КиноПоиск HD) a ...

Critical response

Film.ru reviewer Valery Kichin called Oleg Fomin's film a really funny and really relevant comedy.Рецензия на фильм «День выборов»
/ref> As noted by political consultant Igor Mintusov, it was filmed very talentedly and very well, there are many moments well captured in form. Although the reality is quite adequately shown there, there are few strategic ideas to be seen there.«Выбери меня, выбери меня»: Любимые фильмы политтехнологов
/ref> According to

Boris Nadezhdin Boris Borisovich Nadezhdin (; born 26 April 1963) is a Russian opposition politician. He served in the State Duma from 1999 to 2003. He was also a municipal councillor in Moscow and was considered to be a close ally of opposition politician Bor ...

, an unregistered candidate for the

2024 Russian presidential election Russian presidential elections, Presidential elections were held in Russia from 15 to 17 March 2024. It was the eighth presidential election in the country. The incumbent president Vladimir Putin won with 88% of the vote, the highest percentage ...

, he had told some of the amusing political stories that would later become the basis for the plot of play and film to the

himself.

Sequel

* (2016)

References

External links

* 2007 comedy films 2007 films Russian comedy road movies 2000s Russian films 2000s Russian-language films Russian political satire films Films about elections 2000s comedy road movies Russian comedy films Russian-language comedy films {{2000s-Russia-film-stub