Screenplay "Wizards" by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky, summary

This original screenplay by the Strugatsky brothers, which shares plot similarities with their novella "Monday Begins on Saturday," differs significantly in plot and emphasis. This work from the late 1960s is a satirical and fantastical story about the everyday life of the Scientific Research Institute of Witchcraft and Wizardry (NIICHAVO), where magic coexists with Soviet bureaucracy and cutting-edge science. A key feature of the text is the scene featuring the "model of the ideal person," which became one of the central metaphors for consumerism in the authors’ work.

Although the screenplay served as one of the inspirations for the famous Soviet film "The Wizards" (1982), the film adaptation’s plot was radically altered by director Konstantin Bromberg and bears little resemblance to the Strugatsky brothers’ original text. The original screenplay retained the spirit of the original story and its philosophical themes, while the film became a New Year’s musical comedy.

Arrival in Solovetsky and a night at the museum

The action begins with the arrival of a young Leningrad programmer, Alexander Ivanovich Privalov, in a small northern town. He is met on the square by Edik Pochkin, an institute employee. Since the dormitory is not yet ready, Edik puts his guest up for the night in a museum — the "Hut on Chicken Legs," located at 13 Lukomorye Street. Here, Alexander meets its colorful inhabitants: Vasily, a talking cat suffering from multiple sclerosis and confusing fairy tales, and the caretaker, Naina Kievna Gorynych, an ancient crone with the habits of Baba Yaga.

A strange object is discovered in the room assigned to Privalov — a brand-new sofa, the appearance of which alarms Edik. He explains that it’s not just furniture and asks Sasha not to sleep on it. Alone, Privalov, after the folding bed breaks, breaks the order and lies down on the sofa. He has a strange dream, interrupted by a phone call, after which the sofa mysteriously disappears. Soon, various characters enter the hut: Cristobal Khozevich Junta, wearing a beret, searching for the sofa, and the mechanic Khoma Brut, looking for a drink in the mirror.

The night culminates in Sasha’s experiment with the forgotten "umclaydet" — a cylinder-shaped magic wand. His clumsy handling of the device causes chaos: objects move, strange sounds, and the appearance of ghosts. The situation is saved by the sudden materialization of Fyodor Simeonovich Kivrin, head of the Linear Happiness Department. He explains to Sasha the nature of the institute, where magic is studied using scientific methods, and invites him to work there, as programmers are needed to configure the new Aldan-12 computer.

The battle for the sofa and everyday life NIICHAVO

In the morning, Sasha discovers a rude fellow in the room — Viktor Korneev, who, it turns out, stole the sofa overnight for his research. A scuffle breaks out between them, which is broken up by administrator Modest Matveyevich Kamnoedov. He demands the item be returned to its place. Professor Vybegallo, a demagogue and pseudoscientist, enters the dispute, claiming the sofa for his experiment to create the "perfect human."

Korneev is forced to return the sofa, which turns out to be a "translator of universal transformations," capable of transforming reality into a fairy tale and vice versa. From this moment on, Privalov’s daily work at the Research Institute of Magical Aspects begins. He operates the Aldan-12, helping magicians solve complex problems. The institute’s employees use "doubles" — copies of themselves — to stand in lines and perform routine tasks, although these copies exhibit simplified behavior. Sasha also learns the basics of magic, though not always successfully: an attempt to materialize a pear ends in the creation of an inedible replica.

Professor Vybegallo’s experiment

The central event is a demonstration of the "ideal human model," organized by Professor Vybegallo in a huge hangar. The professor asserts that happiness lies in the complete satisfaction of material needs. A creature resembling Vybegallo himself hatches from a giant egg on a sofa-translator.

A creature called a "cadaver" or "ghoul" begins consuming bread and milk at an incredible rate. Having satisfied its basic hunger, it demands "spiritual food," but it understands this in a peculiar way: by appropriating the belongings of those around it. The cadaver uses telekinesis to pull clothes, watches, and valuables from viewers. Vybegallo tries to present this as a triumph of science, but the situation spirals out of control.

The monster demands more and more: it draws cars, buses, and even a beer tanker into its domain. Junta and Kivrin, realizing the danger of the emergence of a "consumer genius" capable of collapsing space to fulfill its desires, decide to destroy the model. Junta summons a combat robot, the Golem. However, even the robot cannot resist the cadaver’s greed and begins to serve it, packing up the loot.

Viktor Korneev provides the denouement. He throws a bottle containing the genie Zloydukh ibn Jafar into the monster’s mouth. A powerful explosion occurs, destroying both the corpse and the mountain of stolen goods. Vybegallo, accused of mass robbery, is taken into police custody, but is soon rescued by the administration.

Time manipulation

After the laboratory’s destruction, Korneev continues his research. He restores the sofa-translator and, together with Edik, conducts a series of experiments. They cure Khoma Brut of alcoholism with shock therapy and temporarily rejuvenate Naina Kievna.

Korneev’s main project, however, is an attempt to redistribute time. He develops a method that takes time away from those who waste it (for example, the card players Vybegallo and Modest Matveyevich) and transfers it to those who are passionate about their work but don’t have time to complete their research. Thanks to this, Khoma Brut is able to assemble a complex device in a matter of minutes, while the card players are sluggish.

Vybegallo’s disappearance (he vanishes for two weeks, though for him it’s only been a moment) causes a stir. Modest Matveyevich organizes a search committee. The professor is found in his office, frozen over a crossword puzzle in a state of suspended animation. Kivrin and Khunta quickly determine the source of the temporal field and break into Korneev’s lab.

Philosophical ending

A serious discussion is taking place in the lab. Korneev demonstrates his results: he has created "living water" by reviving a frozen flounder using stolen time. Sasha is delighted with the prospects, but the senior mages — Kivrin and Khunta — disapprove of Victor’s methods.

Kivrin points out the moral unacceptability of stealing someone else’s time, even if it’s wasted on trivial things. Junta formulates the main idea: the task of magicians is not to take away and divide time, but to make everyone’s life so rich and interesting that no one has any extra time left.

The script ends with a lyrical and metaphorical scene. Sasha and the witch Stella are strolling by the lake. Their backs are marked with inventory numbers, like the backups, but the voiceover explains that this is a joke by the writers — everything shown was the pure truth, and the real miracles are yet to come.