The Meeting Place Cannot Be Changed

The Meeting Place Cannot Be Changed (Место встречи изменить нельзя) is a 1979 Soviet five-part television film directed by Stanislav Govorukhin. The script, written by Arkady and Georgy Vayner, is based on the plot of their novel The Era of Mercy. Filming occurred in 1978-1979; the pavilion scenes were filmed mainly at the Odessa Film Studio and the natural ones in Moscow. It stars singer-songwriter Vladimir Vysotsky in one of his final screen appearances alongside actor Vladimir Konkin in the main roles; Armen Dzhigarkhanyan, Sergei Yursky, and several other famous Soviet actors also participated in the film. The film is set in post-war Moscow, where the Black Cat gang operates. The investigation into the gang is carried out by employees of the Department for Combating Banditry of the Moscow Criminal Investigations Department, headed by Captain Zheglov. The film's plot echoes the real story of the Krasnogorsk gang of Ivan Mitin, who was engaged in robberies and murders in Moscow and the Moscow Oblast in the early 1950s.

The premiere of Meeting Place was timed to coincide with Police Day and took place on 11–16 November 1979 on Soviet Central Television. The press reacted quite lively to the film's release; reviewers were interested not only in the acting and directorial work but also in the moral problems presented in the story, primarily associated with the ethical confrontations between Zheglov and Sharapov. Among the film's critics were the Vayner brothers, who disagreed with the director's intervention in the dramatic outline of the novel and asked to have their surname removed from the credits. Later, at the brothers' initiative, their surname was returned.

While the film has not received any awards, its creators received diplomas from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Vysotsky was awarded posthumously three times for playing the role of Captain Zheglov: in 1981, a special diploma and a jury prize at the 9th All-Union Film Festival in Yerevan; in 1987, a USSR State Prize; and in 1998, the Prize of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia. In 1999, Vladimir Konkin was awarded the Russian Interior Ministry Prize for his role as Sharapov

It was a cult film in the USSR and, along with Seventeen Moments of Spring, became a part of popular culture for several generations of Russian-language viewers. The series was released in the West as The Age of Mercy, after the original novel by the Vayner brothers on which it is based.

Plot


The story takes place in August–November 1945 in Moscow.

First part
Senior Lieutenant Vladimir Sharapov (Vladimir Konkin) is a young reconnaissance officer who has just returned from the front. He is assigned to peacetime with the famous Moscow Criminal Investigations Department (MUR) and gets acquainted with the head of the anti-banditry department, Captain Gleb Zheglov (Vladimir Vysotsky), and other employees. Sharapov's immersion in operational activities begins on his first day of service when policeman Vasya Vekshin dies before his eyes in a botched undercover operation against the elusive Black Cat gang. Sharapov's first case with MUR is the murder and robbery of a young woman, Larisa Gruzdeva. Zheglov is sure that the crime was committed by Larisa's husband, Dr. Ivan Sergeevich Gruzdev (Sergey Yursky).

Second part
The task force, arriving at the scene of a robbery in progress at a food warehouse, enters into an unsuccessful gunfight with members of the Black Cat gang, which, with its cruelty, instills fear in the inhabitants of Moscow. The gang usually leaves a calling card at the crime scene - either a black cat silhouette drawn in charcoal or a black kitten. In addition, Zheglov and Sharapov continue to investigate the murder of Larisa Gruzdeva. All evidence points to her husband's involvement in the case; nevertheless, Sharapov doubts that the investigation is on the right track. Among the representatives of the criminal world whom he meets during a raid is prostitute Manka Bond (Larisa Udovichenko). A bracelet belonging to the deceased Larisa is found on her hand. Thanks to the information from Manka, Zheglov and Sharapov track down the pickpocket Kirpich (Stanislav Sadalsky); in a conversation with the detectives, he reveals the name of a bandit unknown to them - Fox.

Third part
The capture of Fox (Alexander Belyavsky) is now one of the team's main tasks. Part of the events takes place in the house of Verka the milliner, where Fox brings stolen goods for storage. Zheglov stations two officers in the house to ambush Fox. However, the carefully thought-out plan is foiled by Fox's audacity and the policeman Solovyov's cowardice. Nevertheless, the investigation continues, and at the Bolshoi Theater, Zheglov and Sharapov detain the thief Ruchechnik (Yevgeny Yevstigneyev) and his partner Volokushina (Yekaterina Gradova), who reports that Fox has a "contact phone". Sharapov receives additional information regarding Fox, such as a description of his appearance, from Fox's former mistress, Ingrid Sobolevskaya (Natalya Fateyeva).

Fourth part
Sharapov begins his own investigation into the murder of Larisa Gruzdeva. Rechecking the testimony, he discovers that the gun, which is the main evidence against Gruzdev, was probably planted in his rented apartment by a plumber. At the same time, other details are revealed that make it possible to speak of Gruzdev's innocence. Zheglov, while generally accepting Sharapov's arguments, nevertheless insists on the need to detain Gruzdev in prison further since his release may alert the real murderer. Meanwhile, the team plans to capture Fox in the Astoria restaurant. Sensing something is wrong, Fox slips away from the institution but fails to evade the detectives in a chase. During the police lineup, Zheltovskaya, Gruzdev's new wife, reports that she had previously seen Fox: he appeared in their house disguised as a plumber. After that, Gruzdev is released; Zheglov, convinced that "there is no punishment without guilt," refuses to apologize to him.

Fifth part
Events are developing Black Cat lair, where Sharapov tries to contact the bandits in an undercover operation. Under the alias of Vladimir Sidorenko, he presents a very plausible cover story and convinces the gang members that they must rescue Fox, who is to be taken to the store the gang robbed to conduct an "investigative experiment". The leader of the "Black Cat", Hunchback (Armen Dzhigarkhanyan), is ready to believe the visitor. However, among the gang members, Sharapov discovers his front-line comrade Sergei Levchenko (Viktor Pavlov). At night, Levchenko asks Sharapov to leave the lair. Sharapov refuses.

Meanwhile, Zheglov, realizing that "the meeting place cannot be changed," prepares the store for the bust. It is successful: Sharapov is saved, and the Black Cat gang is arrested. However, Levchenko, taking advantage of the moment, tries to escape. Despite Sharapov's protest, Zheglov shoots Levchenko and kills him. After this, a depressed Sharapov visits his beloved Varvara Sinichkina (Natalya Danilova). Varvara stands at the window; in her hands, she holds a foundling baby taken from the maternity hospital, thanks to which they met a few months ago.

Analysis
Much of the series revolves around the relationship between Zheglov and Sharapov. While the two become close friends and roommates, they are essentially opposites who often clash. At the root of the conflict lies Sharapov's disagreement with Zheglov's "ends justify the means" approach to law enforcement. Zheglov, hardened and cynical from spending the war years in the rear fighting organized crime, thinks that "a thief's place is in prison, and the public couldn't care less about how I put him there". To that end, Zheglov does not hesitate to use dubious tactics, such as planting evidence, to justify the arrest of a notorious pickpocket. Sharapov, on the other hand, considers that the law is a higher value for its own sake and cannot be used merely as a tool. A tense conflict also arises when, to mislead Fox, Zheglov elects to keep Gruzdev under arrest even after it becomes clear that the man is innocent.

Production
The series title is a reference to its finale, where Sharapov's botched attempt to withdraw after making contact with the gang forces Zheglov to follow a previously discarded plan for a risky undercover operation. Hoping that Sharapov will lure the bandits to the scene of a prior robbery as they have previously rehearsed, Zheglov utters: "The place and time of the operation cannot be changed."

According to some recollections, Vysotsky played a major creative role in making the series. He conceived the idea of turning the novel into a movie after receiving an advance copy of the book from the Vayner brothers, and he actively campaigned for the part of Zheglov even though the character in the novel was a much younger man. During production, Vysotsky frequently substituted for Govorukhin as director, including directing the entire scene of Dr. Gruzdev's interrogation, and he also invented the comical attributes of the character of Kostya "The Brick" Saprykin (a good-natured pickpocket with a speech impediment).

Young actor Ivan Bortnik (a close friend of Vysotsky) was praised for his vivid and accurate portrayal of the Black Cat henchman Promokashka – the role that dominated his further acting career. Often typecast as a stereotypical Russian criminal, Bortnik is a highly educated man from a family of Moscow academics. He created his iconic part (most of it ad-libbed since the creators had only envisioned a minor supporting role with little dialogue) only by recollecting his occasional street contacts with young criminal wannabes.

Similarly, veteran film and voice-over actor Aleksandr Belyavsky was routinely approached in the street by ex-convicts who expressed admiration for what they thought to be the actor's former criminal background, citing the scene of Fox's interrogation where he is bleeding from his lip and arrogantly wipes the blood on the side of Sharapov's desk. In reality, Belyavsky had no criminal background whatsoever, and he improvised the entire scene by using cherry preserves he had borrowed from production assistants during a lunch break to simulate the blood.

One of the film's best-known comical scenes originated from an acting gaffe. While signing a written affidavit, prostitute Manka "Obligatsiya" asks Zheglov whether her nickname (Russian for government bond) is correctly spelled with an "O" or an "A". Zheglov responds absentmindedly with the correct spelling before realizing what she was asking and directing her to sign her real name instead. Actress Larisa Udovichenko has revealed that the entire moment was unscripted, and she asked about the spelling because she had been unsure, with Vysotsky deciding to play along. Director Stanislav Govorukhin liked the impromptu and included it in the film.

Sharapov's love interest, patrolwoman Varvara Sinichkina, dies at the end of the novel. The ending was altered in the movie because the studio administrator thought it was too depressing. The Vayner brothers later admitted that they liked the new happy ending better.

The series was initially intended to have seven parts, but Soviet broadcast authorities ordered two trimmed. As a result, many scenes were left out of the final cut, and the Vayners struggled to maintain the narrative flow.

Literary screenplay and director's statement
Meeting Place was based on the novel The Era of Mercy, written by Arkady and Georgy Vayner in 1975. The plot is loosely based on true events but has almost nothing to do with the deeds of the real Black Cat gang. The real members of this gang - mostly teenagers - were detained in the second half of the 1940s after an unsuccessful burglary. Nevertheless, the myth of elusive criminals who left drawings of cats existed in the post-war Moscow environment for quite a long time. The Vayner brothers borrowed only the group's name and symbols from this story. The Krasnogorsk gang of Ivan Mitin is much closer to the gang in the novel. According to Georgy Vayner, "although Sharapov is a collective image, he also has a prototype - Volodya Arapov, who later became the head of the MUR department. He participated in capturing the famous Mitin gang, which we personified as the Black Cat." The storyline connected with the arrest of Ivan Gruzdev also goes back to real events - his prototype is the candidate of medical sciences, Yevgeny Mirkin, who was arrested on suspicion of killing his wife in 1944. Only after the verdict was passed did evidence appear that Mirkin was innocent.

There are different versions associated with the idea of the film adaptation of The Era of Mercy. According to Arkady Vayner's memoirs, after the release of a separate book, he and his brother gave several copies to close friends. Among them was Vladimir Vysotsky. After reading the novel, Vysotsky informed the Vayners that The Era of Mercy was a ready-made basis for a future film in which he would like to stake out the role of Zheglov for himself. Stanislav Govorukhin stated a different interpretation of the events, claiming that he recommended Vysotsky to get acquainted with the work of the Vayners: "Read it, a wonderful role for you."

After the inclusion of The Era of Mercy in the plan of the Odessa Film Studio, the question arose about the director. Initially, the scriptwriting and editorial board planned to involve Villen Novak; later, Aleksey Batalov was considered as a contender. However, neither one could start work due to employment in other projects. Vysotsky proposed Govorukhin for the position of director. The Vayners supported his candidacy after Govorukhin promised the writers at a personal meeting that he would change "not a single line, not a single word" in their script without their consent.

Cast

 * Vladimir Vysotsky as Gleb Zheglov
 * Vladimir Konkin as Vladimir Sharapov
 * Sergei Yursky as Dr. Ivan Gruzdev
 * Natalya Danilova as Varvara Sinichkina
 * Viktor Pavlov as Sergey Levchenko, Sharapov's former comrade-in-arms, member of the Black Cat gang
 * Leonid Kuravlyov as Valentin Bisyaev ("Val'ka Kopchonyiy"), thief
 * Aleksandr Belyavsky as Fox, ranking member of the Black Cat gang
 * Evgeni Evstigneev as Petr Ruchnikov ("Pet'ka Ruchechnik"), fur coat thief
 * Armen Dzhigarkhanyan as "The Hunchback" ("Gorbatyiy"), leader of the Black Cat gang
 * Larisa Udovichenko as Mariya Kolyvanova ("Manka Obligatsiya"), prostitute
 * Stanislav Sadalskiy as Konstantin "The Brick" Saprykin ("Kostya Kirpich"), pickpocket
 * Valeriya Zaklunna as Klasha, The Hunchback's girlfriend
 * Zinoviy Gerdt as Mikhail Bomze, Sharapov's neighbour
 * Aleksandr Abdulov as "Loshak", driver for the Black Cat gang
 * Yekaterina Gradova as Svetlana Volokushuna, "Ruchechnik"'s accomplice
 * Ivan Bortnik as "Promokashka", member of the Black Cat gang

Cultural impact
The film's massive popularity made it a major source of Soviet and post-Soviet popular culture.


 * Armen Dzhigarkhanyan lampooned his performance as The Hunchback in a 1998 installment of the popular Armenian sketch comedy series Our Backyard.
 * In 2010, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin used Zheglov's famous "a thief's place is in prison" line in widely criticized remarks against the jailed tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky.
 * A sculpture featuring Vysotsky and Konkin (as Zheglov and Sharapov) is installed outside the Internal Affairs Ministry building in Kyiv, Ukraine.
 * In 1998, Russian TV star Leonid Parfyonov made a commemorative documentary Meeting Place, 20 Years Later, putting the history of the series' creation in the broader social context of both the plot and the production eras. Parfyonov interviewed members and acquaintances of the cast and crew and actual police detectives and criminals of the 1970s.
 * In 1991, Russian rock band Lyube released their debut album "Atas" (Атас), with the lyrics of the titular song heavily referencing the plot of the movie, primarily focused on the characters of Gleb Zheglov and Vladimir Sharapov and their confrontation with the Black Cat gang.