Just about everyone is this film is cruel and cynical, doing anything possible to take advantage of other "suckers". There's no hint of the kindness that Soviet animation was traditionally known and praised for (at least by its fans). Even the supposed "good guy" commits murder. The stoic heroism of the traditional story is portrayed as something that maybe existed once, but is out of place in modern times. I think that in a Moscow-based studio, this sort of script would not have been allowed - the periphery apparently had more freedom in this regard, at least by 1985. Does it serve more as a warning, as a guide? Or as a preview of the dog-eat-dog times that were shortly to come?