Keswick Film Festival

Synopsis

Former Bolshoi conductor Andrëi Filipov, disgraced for supporting Jewish musicians under Brezhnev’s regime in the ’80s, is now a mere cleaner at the Bolshoi. Intercepting a fax inviting the Bolshoi to perform in Paris, he resolves to reunite his old orchestra and take one last chance to re-enter the big time. Helped by his loyal friend Sacha and their old manager Ivan, Andrei tries to persuade all his musicians, but things start to unravel when they get to Paris…Essentially a larky comedy caper, the film's themes of lost opportunity and growing old strike the right emotional notes, and Mihaileanu manages his cast and amusing script astutely. Well-paced, well-developed characters...and Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto of course.