Steely, authentic performances cut through any sense of impersonation. Law's take on Putin is astonishing, evoking the real figure while digging more deeply into his motivations and dark sense of humour. It's also an increasingly sinister depiction of a principle-free man who seizes and consolidates strength with ruthless efficiency. Meanwhile, as the film's protagonist, Dano gives a remarkably well-rounded turn as a man who simply does what he needs to do while also enjoying life as much as he can.

As it charges through decades, this literate fiction puts historical events into new context. None of what Vadim and Vladimir do is based around political beliefs, so they have unusual freedom to manipulate situations, from the war Chechnya and the Sochi Olympics to the Kursk tragedy and Kyiv's Maidan protests. Plus of course Russia's chaos-inducing social media farms. They want to craft power vertically rather than horizontally; it only looks like a democracy. And the most chilling note is when Boris and Vadim realise that they have built a runaway train that will mow them down.

themes, language, violence, sexuality

14.Apr.26

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