films that make a difference
In August last year, on a flight to Moscow, Russia’s charismatic opposition leader, Alexei Navalny started to scream in agony. The flight immediately diverted to the nearest city and he was rushed unconscious to hospital. What happened next shook the world.
With interviews almost entirely from those “in the room” this film pieces together this incredible story - James Bond meets Johnny English. World leaders pressure President Putin to allow Navalny to be airflifted to a hospital in Berlin experienced in saving the lives of those targetted for poisoning by the Kremlin’s security services. Investigators from Bellingcat prove that not only was Navalny poisoned by an FSB hit squad, but that they had been following him for several years, and developing new variants of the banned chemical weapon, novichok - first used against the Skripals in Salisbury.
This unbelievable tale of international espionage and incompetent assassins comes to a head with one of the would-be murderers confessing to his victim exactly how the poison was administered - applied to the seams of Navalny’s underpants.
Why is Alexei Navalny such a threat to one of the world’s most powerful men, how does he remain an irritant from inside a Russian jail, and how will this battle between two men - one with a team of assassins, the other armed only with a sense of humour, intrepid investigators, and a mastery of social media - play out, and what will that mean for the future of Russia and the rest of the world?
Told by those closest to Navalny, this film incorporates the humour of Navalny’s own YouTube videos to tell a tale worthy of John le Carre.
"Pick of the Day"Daily Express
"This film examines the 2020 poisoning of Navalny, and bungled plot that would be straight out of a Johnny English film, were it not so sinister."Daily Mail
"It takes a brave man to voice opposition to President Vladimir Putin in Russia but Yale-educated lawyer and opposition leader Alexei Navalny has stepped up to the mark "Metro
"The blue-eyed rival Putin can't 'disappear'"Telegraph
"This troubling documentary explores why Navalny is such a thorn in Putin's side"The Times
"Horror and absurdity jostle for space in this fascinating documentary about the 2020 poisoning"The Guardian
"Critics Choice: This documentary investigates the incident in August 2020 when Russia’s opposition leader Alexei Navalny"iNews
"Pick of the Day ★★★★"Daily Mail
"What to Watch: An extraordinary and bizarrely entertaining film exploring the operation of a state- sponsored murder programme in Russia"Telegraph
"Today's Best Documentary"The Sun
"This documentary explores why Navalny is such a thorn in Putin’s side"The Times
"Not only was Navalny poisoned by a Russian security service hit squad, but that they had been following him for years. ★★★★"Mail on Sunday
"In a film brimming with the banality of evil, the most absurd moment comes when Navalny tricks one of his alleged would-be assassins into outlining their modus operandi by pretending to be a Putin aide"Sunday Telegraph
"The future of Russian democracy is at stake and Navalny’s near-death experience is a warning to other dissidents."Observer
"The film includes a remarkable recording of one of the alleged would-be assassins, Konstantin Kudryavtsev, complaining that “events went against us”"Sunday Times
"The slick spy-film stylings of this documentary can’t hide the sinister repression and violence at the heart of its startling story"The Sunday Times