The Russia House
Performance & Direction: The Russia House Review
Last updated: February 2, 2026
Quick Verdict: Hit or Flop?
Is The Russia House (1990) worth watching? According to our cinematic analysis, the film stands as a ABOVE AVERAGE with a verified audience rating of 6.1/10. Whether you're looking for the box office collection, ending explained, or parents guide, our review covers everything you need to know about this Drama.
Cast Performances: A Masterclass
The success of any Drama is often anchored by its ensemble, and The Russia House features a noteworthy lineup led by Sean Connery . Supported by the likes of Michelle Pfeiffer and Roy Scheider , the performances bring a palpable realism to the scripted words.
Performance Analysis: While the cast delivers competent and professional performances, they are occasionally hampered by a script that leans into familiar archetypes.
Final Verdict: Is it Worth Watching?
Story & Plot Summary: The Russia House
Quick Plot Summary: The Russia House is a Drama, Thriller, Romance film that explores complex human emotions and relationships through detailed character development. This summary provides a scannable look at the movie's central conflict and narrative structure.
Ending Explained: The Russia House
Ending Breakdown: The Russia House concludes its story with a mix of closure and open interpretation. The finale presents its approach to drama resolution.
The final reveal recontextualizes earlier scenes, offering viewers material for post-viewing discussion.
Ending Analysis:
- Narrative Resolution: The story concludes by addressing its primary narrative threads, providing closure while maintaining some ambiguity.
- Character Arcs: Character journeys reach their narrative endpoints, reflecting the film's thematic priorities.
- Thematic Payoff: The ending reinforces the drama themes established throughout the runtime.
The final moments of The Russia House reflect the filmmakers' creative choices, offering an ending that aligns with the film's tone and style.
Who Should Watch The Russia House?
Worth Watching If You:
- Enjoy Drama films and don't mind familiar tropes
- Are a fan of the cast or director
- Want a character-driven story with emotional moments
Box Office Collection: The Russia House
| Metric / Region | Collection (Approx) |
|---|---|
| Production Budget | $21.8M |
| Worldwide Gross | $23.0M |
| Trade Verdict | FINANCIAL DISAPPOINTMENT |
The Russia House Budget
The estimated production budget for The Russia House is $21.8M. This figure covers principal photography, talent acquisitions, and visual effects. When accounting for global marketing and distribution, the break-even point is typically 2x the base production cost.
Top Cast: The Russia House
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Where to Watch The Russia House Online?
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Apple TV StoreThe Russia House Parents Guide & Age Rating
1990 AdvisoryWondering about The Russia House age rating or if it's safe for kids? Here is our cinematic advisory:
⏱️ Runtime & Duration
The total runtime of The Russia House is 118 minutes (1h 58m). Ensuring you have enough time for the full cinematic experience.
Verdict Summary
Analyzing the overall audience sentiment, verified rating of 6.1/10, and global performance metrics, The Russia House is classified as a ABOVE AVERAGE. It remains an essential part of the 1990 cinematic calendar.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is The Russia House worth watching?
The Russia House is definitely worth watching if you enjoy Drama movies. It has a verified rating of 6.1/10 and stands as a ABOVE AVERAGE in our box office analysis.
Where can I find The Russia House parents guide and age rating?
The official parents guide for The Russia House identifies it as R. Our detailed advisory section above covers all content warnings for families.
What is the total runtime of The Russia House?
The total duration of The Russia House is 118 minutes, which is approximately 1h 58m long.
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How The Russia House Compares & Where it Ranks
Critic Reviews for The Russia House
_**Artistic production with Sean Connery and Michelle Pfeiffer, but uninteresting spy story**_ A few years before the fall of the Soviet Union, a boozy English publisher named Barley (Sean Connery) is sent a mysterious manuscript via a beautiful Russian editor named Katya (Michelle Pfeiffer), but it’s intercepted by British intelligence and Barley is coerced into going to Moscow & Leningrad to meet with Katya and the writer of the documents (Klaus Maria Brandauer), which contain technical data that calls into question the quality of the Soviet defense weaponry. Meanwhile both British and American agents (Roy Scheider, James Fox, et al.) surveil Barley’s activities. Based on John le Carre's novel, "The Russia House" (1990) is a spy drama/romance and NOT an action thriller in the mold of James Bond. Its considerable attributes include spectacular (and rare) on-location work in Russia (shot just a couple years before the fall of the USSR), Jerry Goldsmith's sumptuous jazzy score with Branford Marsalis playing soprano sax and, of course, the notable cast. The film is aesthetically pleasing and the love story is effective, especially its culmination, but the spy yarn didn’t interest me. This may because I didn’t utilize the subtitles and therefore missed a lot of the highly accented verbiage, which is a mistake when a movie is dialogue-driven, like this one. The depiction of intelligence work is presumably realistic (as opposed to 007), but static, boring, cynical and with little human decency. Next time I watch it I’ll be sure to use the subtitles. The film runs 2 hour, 3 minutes, and was shot in Moscow & Leningrad and points nearby; as well as Lisbon, Portugal (Barley’s flat); Bowen Island, British Columbia (American Intelligence 'safe house'); and London (book fair & jazz concert), as well as nearby Pinewood Studios. GRADE: C+/B-
Sean Connery at least looks like he's having some fun in this otherwise rather dry adaptation of the John Le Carré tale of Cold War espionage. He's "Barley", a publisher who is recruited by MI5 to investigate a secret document sent from the USSR purporting to itemise their nuclear arsenal. Needless to say both the British and their CIA counterparts are wetting themselves at the very thought of this being real, but that needs to be verified - and that's where they recruit "Barley". He travels to Moscow to meet the author, codenamed "Dante" (Klaus Maria Brandauer) and it's whilst there he becomes increasingly distracted by his "editor" (Michelle Pfeiffer) - a woman whom his source claims never to have met! As the plot develops, it becomes clear that strings are being pulled but also that "Barley" is beginning to think on his own, and not necessarily with his brain either. Will he stick to the plan or will he throw a spanner in the works of his Western handlers? It's a solid enough story but it's padded out far too thinly. There's no chemistry between the characters from Connery and Pfeiffer (and her ropey accent) and though there are plenty of red herrings to fuel the intrigue, that's all delivered in a remarkably sterile and disjointed fashion. Le Carré's stories always focussed on detail and this film rather skirts over that in favour of developing the burgeoning romance, and that rather neuters the sense of suspense that's also not really helped by the blandness of James Fox and Roy Scheider. It's watchable, but nobody's finest two hours.
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This review has been verified for accuracy and editorial quality by our senior cinematic analysts.
This analysis is compiled by our editorial experts using multi-source verification and audience sentiment data for maximum accuracy.










