Total Balalaika Show (1994)

Good movie but grossly overrated

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

Well, this certainly isn't your run of the mill rock'n'roll concert. On June 12, 1993 the Leningrad Cowboys joined forces with the Alexandrov Red Army Ensemble to perform a live concert in Helsinki's Senate Square in front of an audience of 70,000 people. The sheer incongruity and improbability of this event gives the whole thing a marvelously surreal aura: The Leningrad Cowboys sport their trademark ridiculous unicorn horn hairstyles and pointy shoes while the Red Army choir are dressed to the dignified nines in their military uniforms and really pour their hearts and souls into their singing. But somehow these two radically contrasting groups mesh perfectly into a fantastic whole, with spot-on stirring performances of such songs as the majestic "Volga Boatman," the joyous "Happy Together," the stately "Knockin' on Heaven's Door," the lovely "Kalinka," and an especially spirited rendition of "Sweet Home Alabama." Best of all, this concert stands tall as a glorious testament on how the power of music crosses all cultural boundaries and brings people together. A total treat.

A 57 minute documentary of a Helsinki concert featuring the Leningrad Cowboys and the Alexandrov Red Army Choir and Ballet, who collaborate on a number of US Rock songs sung in English (like "Sweet Home, Alabama") as well as more traditional Russian songs like the "Volga Boatman".After a successful movie or two, the Leningrad Cowboys had to become a real musical sensation. And why not? They sound good, they look good, and the time was right for a blend of Russian and American culture, even if it was done by a bunch of Finnish guys.What we get is a nice mix of classic American rock (1960s and 70s tunes) and Russian standards that probably will not be familiar to most Americans. All the more reason to check it out, because they do a superb job presenting both.

The Red Army Choir performing "Happy Together" with a Finnish band called the Leningrad Cowboys? To top it, even singing "Finlandia" at Helsinki's Senate Square? This concert, filmed in 1993, would have seemed rather unthinkable a few years earlier. It's still a surreal experience to watch it on DVD: the Russian choir and orchestra in stiff uniforms, bearing a mostly somber expression combined with the ludicrously styled, eccentric Leningrad Cowboys and their often parodistic rock demeanour. Remembering the time of Cold War, it is also strangely touching. But what about the music? Well, I have to say that it's not bad at all. Quite the contrary, it's surprisingly good. The Red Army Choir's unnamed lead singer does impressive work together with the Cowboys, and I'm sure that the popular Russian songs sound exactly as they should, although the selection can't be called particularly original (neither the choice of Western songs), but that was probably exactly the right decision for a concert of this kind. It's energetic and in its incomparable blend of silliness and really serious musicianship (on both "sides") something to behold, indeed.

Having seen 2 performances by the Leningrad Cowboys and listened to their cd's I can only conclude that this documentary gives a hint of the excellence of the total. The choir is one of the best in the world and the band is the best in the world(IMHO).I would have a preferred to see the entire show including the intermissions, that would have given a more complete sence of the overal atmosfere.