A summary of Ivan Okhlobystin’s "The Nightingale the Robber"

Ivan Okhlobystin’s screenplay for this crime comedy was written in 2008. The work reimagines themes of Russian national epic poetry through the lens of social satire. The plot centers on former manager Sevastyan Solovyov, who consciously becomes a popular avenger and a symbol of merciless rebellion.

The script was successfully adapted into a film. A film of the same name, directed by Yegor Baranov, was released in 2012, with the author himself playing the lead role. The film won the "Best Film of the Year" award from the website "Laboratory of Science Fiction."

Daring highway robberies

The events unfold around a series of high-profile crimes in the Moscow region. In General Serenadov’s office, a robbery of a police car is being discussed. The criminals stole one hundred thousand euros, killing two police officers. The prime suspect, Sevastyan Solovyov, embarks on a criminal career. District police officer Anisim Petushkov takes an undisguised liking to Solovyov, understanding well the reasons for the public’s love for this daring outlaw. The general assigns a special task force to investigate the case.

The Making of a Villain

Solovyov erases all traces of his past life. He burns the entire police archive, along with documents from human resources departments and educational institutions, thereby erasing all information about his biography. Solovyov kills the bandit Polya Grek over an unpaid restaurant bill. The bandit takes his charred leather coat and Mauser pistols, and orders him to replace the murdered victim’s gold teeth. Solovyov proclaims himself a 100% villain.

Formation of a criminal group

A loyal crew gathers around Solovyov. Solovyov infiltrates the opera house, shoots the conductor, and takes the singer Isabella Yuryevna Papayani with him. She receives the nickname "Prima" and begins shooting bank employees. The gang is joined by former accountant Alexander Voldarsky, nicknamed "Debit," and blacksmith Ignat Krivenko, nicknamed "Molot," who crushes enemies with a sledgehammer.

Investigation of Super Agent H7

The authorities decide to recruit a secret agent codenamed H7 to eliminate the gang. The major lectures the cadets on Nightingale’s habits, calling him a new kind of criminal — "Homo russicus razboinicus." Agent H7 begins studying the situation in the village of Klyuyevo by eavesdropping on the conversations of ordinary villagers. He overhears a terrifying tale from a little boy about Moscow bosses taking children’s hearts for profit. H7 realizes the scale of the bandit’s popular support.

The daring antics of the robbers

The gang continues to terrorize the authorities. Soon, Solovey personally appears at the police station where he previously resided. He brings a new photo for the wanted poster, takes twenty machine guns from the armory, and signs an autograph for the officer on duty as a souvenir.

Escalation of armed conflict

Agent H7 infiltrates Solovyov’s group and gradually switches sides. General Serenadov is losing patience. Two hundred regular army soldiers are converging on Solovyov’s base. The bandits find themselves completely surrounded in the open. The amorous waitress Zinochka joins the few defenders. The forces are completely uneven.

The final battle with the army

The assault on the bandits’ positions begins. The soldiers, stupefied by gasoline fumes, launch a frontal assault. Nightingale masterfully wields a huge cleaver, Molot splits soldiers’ heads with a sledgehammer, and the defector H7 wields chrome-molybdenum stilettos. Zinochka fights alongside her comrades like a lion. The army suffers colossal losses. Only the fourth wave of attackers physically overwhelms the defenders.

Fiery denouement

General Serenadov rejoices in his imminent victory. Suddenly, Solovyov’s hand rises above the crowd of screaming soldiers, and the lid of a golden lighter clicks loudly. A powerful fiery whirlwind instantly engulfs Serenadov and the entire army unit. The official version of the bandit’s biography states that all those involved in the massacre were killed. However, Prima was later seen alive, disguised as a nun. Debit is serving a prison sentence for robbery in Colorado.

The Birth of a New Legend

A strange superstition has taken root among residents of the southeastern Moscow region. At midnight on the eve of Kolkhoz Worker’s Day, a ghostly man appears on the highway on a three-wheeled motorcycle. The motorcyclist, with gold teeth, is dressed in a charred leather coat, and a three-legged dog trots faithfully behind him. An encounter with the ghost promises undoubted good luck for middle-income Russians. For wealthy voters, such an apparition brings misfortune.