Stars: Julia Vysotsky, Sultan Islamov, Bryan Adams

Director: Andrei Konchalovsky

Summary: Janna lives in a small Russian mental hospital close to the Chechen border, convinced that the rock star Bryan Adams is her fiance. When fighting starts, the hospital doctor becomes concerned for the welfare of the patients and goes out to find transport to move them, leaving them to their own devices. When a friendly group of Chechen soldiers enter the hospital Janna falls head over heels in love with one of them, but will Bryan give her up without a fight?

The residents of a Russian mental institution become unwittingly involved in the Chechen War in this darkly romantic film by Andrei Konchalovsky (TANGO AND CASH). Janna (Julia Vysotsky) is a romantically delusional inmate who thinks she's engaged to pop star Bryan Adams. When the war comes, the medical staff flees the hospital, leaving her more or less in charge. Chechen soldiers soon invade the grounds and one of them proposes to her as a joke. She thinks he's sincere though, and finds her affections torn between the soldier and her fantasies of Adams. Through this odd love story, Konchalovsky effectively explores the parallels between the insanity of war and the insanity of the inmates, and he does so without being obvious or didactic. Also effective is the film's grainy, bleached-out look, which, combined with the realistic lunacy on display, recalls the work of Dogme '95 directors like Lars Von Trier. What sets HOUSE OF FOOLS apart from that pack, however, is the kindness and warmth of its characters, particularly Janna, who soothes the nerves of soldiers and patients alike with her compassion and accordion playing. Vysotksky gives a remarkable performance in the role, couching her character's raw vulnerability in a protective bed of delusion. As the object of her fantasies, Adams gamely appears as himself, strolling through the bomb-blasted corridors as he lip-syncs "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman." HOUSE OF FOOLS was filmed largely at an actual Russian mental institution, with many of the inmates appearing as themselves.

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Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Year:	2002
Release Date:	March 8, 2004
Runtime:	104 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	P H E 8436
Keywords:	House, Comedy, General, Fools, Dom, Durakov
Genre:	Comedy