COMEDY . 1989 . 1h 55m . 3.6/10

How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea_

In this farcical dark comedy/melodrama, Lena manages to lose her place at college by virtue of throwing a minor hissy-fit when she catches her erstwhile boyfriend in bed with another girl. Instead of penalizing the boy for his behavior, Lena gets stuck with a court appearance and must pay a small fine, in addition to losing a boyfriend, her college career, and an apartment. Lena belongs to a film club which occasionally hands out awards, and the membership of it decides to send her into the Russian hinterlands to hand out an award to an obscure filmmaker. Throughout the film, Lena has been associated with a bizarre con man named Stepanych who, when his cons fall through, comes to her in the distant town she has gone to seeking her help in committing suicide.

Starring Aleksei Zharkov, Natalya Negoda, Aleksandr Mironov
3.6/10
Rating
1h 55m
Runtime
1989
Year
Updated Feb 16, 2026
How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea poster

In this farcical dark comedy/melodrama, Lena manages to lose her place at college by virtue of throwing a minor hissy-fit when she catches her erstwhile boyfriend in bed with another girl. Instead of penalizing the boy for his behavior, Lena gets stuck with a court appearance and must pay a small fine, in addition to losing a boyfriend, her college career, and an apartment. Lena belongs to a film club which occasionally hands out awards, and the membership of it decides to send her into the Russian hinterlands to hand out an award to an obscure filmmaker. Throughout the film, Lena has been associated with a bizarre con man named Stepanych who, when his cons fall through, comes to her in the distant town she has gone to seeking her help in committing suicide.

WHERE TO WATCH

No streaming data available yet.

Check availability

DROPTHE_ GOSSIP

Cast
Aleksei Zharkov stars as Евгений Степанович Иванов, 50-летний аферист in How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea.
Aleksei Zharkov →
Year context
How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea was released 37 years ago in 1989.
Overview
In this farcical dark comedy/melodrama, Lena manages to lose her place at college by virtue of throwing a minor hissy-fit when she catches her erstwhile boyf...
How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea is a Comedy, Romance film with a runtime of 1h 55m.

CAST (20)

Aleksei Zharkov
Aleksei Zharkov
Евгений Степанович Иванов, 50-летний аферист
Natalya Negoda
Natalya Negoda
Elena Igorevna Fomkina, student of the financial academy
Aleksandr Mironov
Aleksandr Mironov
лейтенант милиции Кондаков
Anastasiya Vertinskaya
Anastasiya Vertinskaya
Дуня Фомкина, мать Лены
Aleksandr Lenkov
Aleksandr Lenkov
Игорь Иванович, отец Лены
Andrey Sokolov
Andrey Sokolov
Борис, сын Степаныча, фотограф
Anna Tikhonova
Anna Tikhonova
Жанна Фролова, продавец в универмаге
GM
Grigori Manukov
Олег Стрельников, сын артиста, врач
Vatslav Dvorzhetsky
Vatslav Dvorzhetsky
Фёдор Фёдорович Стрельников, актёр-юбиляр
Igor Zolotovitsky
Igor Zolotovitsky
Александр Губанищев
Aleksandr Negreba
Aleksandr Negreba
Петр Зарамушкин, директор театра
Ervand Arzumanyan
Ervand Arzumanyan
Ашот Арамович
Nadezhda Markina
Nadezhda Markina
Соня, жена Олега Стрельникова
Sofya Pavlova
Sofya Pavlova
Любовь Сергеевна, жена Фёдора Фёдоровича
Mariya Selyanskaya
Mariya Selyanskaya
Марина, подружка Лены
Levan Mskhiladze
Levan Mskhiladze
Саша, бывший жених Лены
Marina Tarasova
Marina Tarasova
судья
SM
Svetlana Masko
Ида Марковна
Yuriy Nazarov
Yuriy Nazarov
Юрий Владимирович, стекольщик
Larisa Borushko
Larisa Borushko
невеста Губанищева

DETAILS

Release
Status
Released
Runtime
115 min (1h 55m)
Country
Italy, SU
Rating
3.6/10 (5 votes)

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea about?
In this farcical dark comedy/melodrama, Lena manages to lose her place at college by virtue of throwing a minor hissy-fit when she catches her erstwhile boyfriend in bed with another girl. Instead of penalizing the boy for his behavior, Lena gets stuck with a court appearance and must pay a small fine, in addition to losing a boyfriend, her college career, and an apartment. Lena belongs to a film club which occasionally hands out awards, and the membership of it decides to send her into the Russian hinterlands to hand out an award to an obscure filmmaker. Throughout the film, Lena has been associated with a bizarre con man named Stepanych who, when his cons fall through, comes to her in the distant town she has gone to seeking her help in committing suicide.
How long is How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea?
How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea has a runtime of 115 minutes (1h 55m).
Who stars in How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea?
The cast of How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea includes Aleksei Zharkov, Natalya Negoda, Aleksandr Mironov, Anastasiya Vertinskaya, Aleksandr Lenkov.
What is the rating of How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea?
How Dark the Nights Are on the Black Sea has a rating of 3.6 out of 10 based on 5 votes on TMDB.

GENRES (2)

Comedy Romance
SHARE