Kin-dza-dza!

Two Soviet men, strangers to each other, stumble into an alien teleportation device and wind up on a stark world called Pluke in the Kin-dza-dza galaxy. Cut off from home, they have to make sense of a language and customs that feel alien at every turn. Daily life on Pluk is governed by odd rules, petty power plays, and a rough pragmatism that tests their patience and wits. As space and time lose their usual rhythm, the men scramble to understand what this place wants from them and to figure out a way back to Earth. The tone stays dry and sly, showing how quickly strangers adapt and clash in a world built on arbitrary rules for a wider audience.

Directed by Georgiy Daneliya from Revaz Gabriadze's concept that shaped film, Kin-dza-dza was released in 1986 in the Soviet Union. It blends dark humor with science fiction and a theatre influenced visual style born from Gabriadze's puppetry and production design.

Box office data for Kin-dza-dza is not widely documented. The film is better known as a cult classic whose influence grew through rereleases and word of mouth rather than blockbuster grosses. Its footprint remains modest, felt in home video circulation.

Over the years Kin-dza-dza has seeped into popular culture in the Soviet bloc and beyond. Its language play and stark visuals became shorthand for social satire and dystopia, influencing filmmakers, comedians, and sci fi fans who value offbeat humor. The film's look sparked parodies and stage adaptations lingering after credits.

Critics have lauded its sharp mix of humor and social critique. The film probes how language barriers and rigid hierarchies shape human behavior, and it uses scarcity and absurd systems to reveal the fragility of ordinary decency under pressure, across cultures. It continues to resonate with audiences around the world.