MOSCOW ON THE HUDSON

Year: 1984
Cast: Robin Williams, Elya Baskin, Maria Conchita Alonso
Score: ***1/2

Plot centers on a Russian saxophonist, part of a Russian circus troupe, who defects on a trip to New York in, of all places, Bloomingdale's. The first thirty minutes center in the Soviet Union where we experience the horror and hopelessness of living under communist rule, and then the last hour or so centers on America, where there's a lot of poverty too, but unlike Russia, there's a glimmer of hope. Elya Baskin, who plays Williams Russian buddy - a clown in the circus - who implanted the desire to defect but then gets sidetracked at the last moment, all but makes the film. His initial catapult is omnipresent. And Williams is cool and natural as a Russian, with an accent that never falters. This is more proof that the beloved funnyman can be a terrific actor when he's got the right script.