The film reveals the dark history of totalitarian repressions during the late 1930s, focusing on a peculiar artifact: hedgehog cakes. Named after the notorious Soviet people's commissar Nikolai Yezhov (with "yezh" meaning "hedgehog" in Russian), these seemingly innocent desserts became a spooky symbol of terror. According to speculative theories, hedgehog cakes were not just treats but served as secret signals of inescapable danger, marking recipients for possible exile to Siberian camps or even death.