King for a Day (1983 film)

King for a Day (Bulgarian: Господин за един ден / Gospodin za edin den) is a Bulgarian comedy-drama film released in 1983, directed by Nikolay Volev, starring Todor Kolev and Itzhak Fintzi. The screenplay is written by Nikola Statkov based on his short stories “The Outlander” and “The Mister”.

The main character Purko (Todor Kolev) is a poor peasant with many children, constantly starting extravagant initiatives to get out of poverty during the hard times between the two world wars. The only consolation he finds in the music with his clarinet and his inborn musical talent until one day he meets an elegant couple from a town. They promise him prosperity if he mortgage his house and invest the money in their business.

This is the second out of three super hit films, featuring Todor Kolev in the leading role, released during the 1980s. The others are The Double (1980) directed also by Nikolay Volev and Dangerous Charm (1984) directed by Ivan Andonov. The performance by Kolev, with a reverence to the great comedians of the silent cinema, received a broad critical acclaim.