# Can you identify this obscure movie? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 7, 2015, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-identify-this-obscure-movie/709321 "2015-01-07T21:19:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![fifty2soon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9e5f3/32.png) [@fifty2soon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fifty2soon)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-identify-this-obscure-movie/709321/1 "2015-01-07T21:19:48Z")
This one might be even TOUGHER to find. I believe a 1990s film, FOREIGN FILM, COMEDY, either Czech Republic or Poland. Was on a pay cable channel (Showtime, Starz, etc.) The description in the TV guide from a newspaper listed a plot about a POLKA BAND. They looked kind of punk rock, so a “modern polka band”? Could have been a wrong description calling it a “polka band”. They had a sax player who was frozen solid, so he was presumed dead. They had pet dog with spiked hair on his head. At the end, at some major gig, the sax player had just defrosted, and without saying a word, went into a solo just in time. It was a ridiculous funny Euro film and I can’t find any trace of it, but it was on PAY TV in the late 1990s. HELP!! ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2015, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-identify-this-obscure-movie/709321/2 "2015-01-08T02:20:23Z")
> [@fifty2soon](#): > > This one might be even TOUGHER to find. > > I believe a 1990s film, FOREIGN FILM, COMEDY, either Czech Republic or Poland. > > Was on a pay cable channel (Showtime, Starz, etc.) > > The description in the TV guide from a newspaper listed a plot about a POLKA BAND. > > They looked kind of punk rock, so a “modern polka band”? Could have been a wrong description calling it a “polka band”. > > They had a sax player who was frozen solid, so he was presumed dead. > > They had pet dog with spiked hair on his head. > > At the end, at some major gig, the sax player had just defrosted, and without saying a word, went into a solo just in time. It was a ridiculous funny Euro film and I can’t find any trace of it, but it was on PAY TV in the late 1990s. > > HELP!! This sounds vaguely similar to my recollection of [Leningrad Cowboys Go America](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097728/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_1) (1989), a Finnish film about a Russian band. Haven’t seen it in maybe 20 years. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2015, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-identify-this-obscure-movie/709321/3 "2015-01-08T09:22:41Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > This sounds vaguely similar to my recollection of [Leningrad Cowboys Go America](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097728/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_1) (1989), a Finnish film about a Russian band. Haven’t seen it in maybe 20 years. I’ve never seen it, but that does sound like the movie. > **[Leningrad Cowboys Go America](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leningrad_Cowboys_Go_America)** > > Leningrad Cowboys Go America is a 1989 road movie by Finnish film director Aki Kaurismäki about the adventures of the Leningrad Cowboys, an eccentric band that travels to the United States to become successful, and combines their brand of polka music with various American styles as they make their way to Mexico. > The Leningrad Cowboys, a band with foot-long quiff hairstyles and long Winklepicker shoes to match, live in the tundra. Their manager Vladimir tries to promote them, but nobody seems ... Lots of clips on YouTube, but it looks like the frozen band member was the bass player. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Vd5KWveH1RE/hqdefault.jpg "Leningrad Cowboys") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vd5KWveH1RE) ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2015, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-identify-this-obscure-movie/709321/4 "2015-01-08T15:09:22Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > This sounds vaguely similar to my recollection of [Leningrad Cowboys Go America](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097728/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_1) (1989), a Finnish film about a Russian band. Haven’t seen it in maybe 20 years. [quote=“Accidental\_Martyr, post:3, topic:709321”] I’ve never seen it, but that does sound like the movie. > **[Leningrad Cowboys Go America](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leningrad_Cowboys_Go_America)** > > Leningrad Cowboys Go America is a 1989 road movie by Finnish film director Aki Kaurismäki about the adventures of the Leningrad Cowboys, an eccentric band that travels to the United States to become successful, and combines their brand of polka music with various American styles as they make their way to Mexico. > The Leningrad Cowboys, a band with foot-long quiff hairstyles and long Winklepicker shoes to match, live in the tundra. Their manager Vladimir tries to promote them, but nobody seems ... Lots of clips on YouTube, but it looks like the frozen band member was the bass player. [/QUOTE] I remember it was a great film. The director was Aki Kaurismaki, who along with his brother once seemed to be responsible for maybe a quarter of Finnish movie output. He’s often an acquired taste, but I really like him. ---
**Author:** ![troub](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troub/32/14802_2.png) [@troub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troub)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2015, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-identify-this-obscure-movie/709321/5 "2015-01-09T16:25:37Z")
It’s definitely Leningrad Cowboys. I also haven’t seen it in forever. Seems like every 10 years or so, I check the web to see if I can pick up a copy. Looks like today’s the day. Whoa, [here’s one that’s not a VHS and is Region 1!](http://amzn.com/B005D0RDGG) Hmmm…