Poisons or the World History of Poisoning

Oleg and Katya move into their newly bought apartment and quickly become acquainted with their locksmith neighbor Arnold Sharapov. The first days show a warm, ordinary routine that hints at hidden tensions beneath the surface. Their growing closeness with Arnold foreshadows the entanglements to come.

During a friendly dinner, Katya betrays Oleg, triggering jealousy, suspicion, and a fracture in trust. The revelation ripples through the building, souring relationships and setting the tone for ongoing tension. Oleg grapples with the sense of betrayal and its implications for his marriage.

Oleg sinks into alcohol and meets pensioner Prokhorov at a dim bar. Prokhorov speaks in a matter-of-fact way about his punishment for infidelity—slipping poison into his wife's yogurt—and quietly presses Oleg to consider a similar act. He carries with him a quiet arsenal of past misdeeds that unsettles Oleg and plants a dangerous temptation.

Oleg confronts the moral abyss and hesitates to act, wrestling with the idea of revenge. The encounter leaves him unsettled while a new chain of events hints at further trouble ahead. He remains on the brink, weighing a clandestine path.

A quarrel within the family erupts, forcing Oleg to leave his home. He becomes a guest of Zoya, Arnold’s wife, who has expelled her own unfaithful husband. The separation pushes him toward a fragile new stability with a person connected to the same circle.

Oleg and Zoya grow closer while navigating their broken loyalties around them. They find comfort in each other and begin to imagine building a life together, despite the surrounding fractures. Their bond marks the start of a hopeful, albeit fragile, new chapter.

Arnold and Katya plot to break the growing bond by inviting Oleg and Zoya to dinner and serving them contaminated burgers. The plan is designed to sever their relationship and reignite jealousies within the former couple. The dinner becomes a tense test of loyalty and self-control.

In the wake of the plot, Oleg seeks counsel from Prokhorov, who offers a sequence of cunning retaliatory steps, each more devious than the last. The advice tugs at Oleg’s conscience while fueling his inner debate about justice, revenge, and the cost of violence. The mentor's presence underscores the film's themes of power and consequence.

Oleg ultimately decides to step back from the cycle of revenge. He rejects escalating harm and refuses to let the past dictate his future. This pivotal moment allows him to pursue a different path with Zoya.

The two couples dissolve their relationships; Arnold and Katya divorce, and Oleg and Zoya begin a life together built on love and shared interests. The dissolution clears the air, replacing bitterness with the possibility of honest connection. The community's old loyalties are replaced by new, more hopeful bonds.

Throughout the story, Oleg’s daydreams drift into vivid visions inspired by Prokhorov’s tales of famed poisoners. The fantasy offers a lens into his psyche and the power dynamics that haunt him. The recurring visions keep the danger always present, even as he seeks peace.

In the reveries, Pope Alexander VI Borgia looms large as a symbol of scheming authority and peril. The historical figure underscores the film’s themes about power, betrayal, and following dangerous echoes from the past. The closing image ties the allure of power to the couple’s fragile happiness.