House of Fools

"It's a mad, mad, mad world..."

2002 1h 44m RU

😐

5.9

MID

★5.9TMDB · 53

DramaRomanceWar

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The war film that's not a war film. A film about the mental institution which backdrop is the Chechen war. A story about the patients living in an institution during the war on the border of Chechnia and Russia during the war. The patients have to continue living their day to day life after being invaded twice over, and they have to deal with their sicknesses.

“It's a mad, mad, mad world...”

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Cast

Yuliya Vysotskaya
Zhanna
Evgeny Mironov
Officer
Vladas Bagdonas
Doctor
Marina Politseymako
Vika
Anatoli Adoskin
Fucue
Sultan Islamov
Ahmed
Stanislav Varkki
Ali
Elena Fomina
Lucy

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Andrei Konchalovsky
Writers: Andrei Konchalovsky
Languages: Chechen, Russian
Countries: France, Russia

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $2.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 6% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 24 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Chechen, Russian.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: France, Russia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Andrei Konchalovsky, shot by Sergei Kozlov. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Eduard Artemyev. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Olga Grinshpun shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Andrei Konchalovsky directs. Sergei Kozlov behind the camera. Eduard Artemyev scores. Olga Grinshpun cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in France, Russia. Dialogue in Chechen, Russian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $2.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Earned back only 6% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
3Released 24 years ago.
4Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Chechen, Russian.
5International production across 2 countries: France, Russia.
6Directed by Andrei Konchalovsky, shot by Sergei Kozlov. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Original score by Eduard Artemyev. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
8Editor Olga Grinshpun shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
9Yuliya Vysotskaya and Evgeny Mironov and Vladas Bagdonas carry the top of the cast.
10Marketing tagline: "It's a mad, mad, mad world...".
11IMDB entry: tt0332605 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
12Only 53 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
13Released under 19 different titles around the world.