This is just the kind of documentary you want to watch. It’s got intrigue, a charismatic protagonist and it captures real-life drama unfolding on camera.

You may have heard of Alexei Navalny. He announced he was running against Vladimir Putin on a platform of anti-corruption. He’s a YouTube star with 6 million subscribers and unafraid to speak up so he is a serious contender. In 2020, he was poisoned with a nerve agent and this is where this often gripping documentary by Daniel Roher picks up his story.

There is so much footage of Navalny, either taken by himself and his team or from news and online posts, that this is a rich and visually engaging story. After they manage to get Navalny out of Russia to less problematic medical care in Germany, his team sets about trying to prove that the poisoning was sanctioned by the Kremlin. Enter Christo Grosev, a “very nice kind Bulgarian nerd with a laptop.”

There’s a scene in the middle of the film that is remarkable and is the kind of incident that any documentarian would hope for. That it is captured on film gives us an unprecedented insight into the workings of the FSB and the emotions are palpable – both happy and suddenly sad as the ramifications of what they have obtained hits home.

I won’t tell you what happens but it doesn’t matter if you know the story of Navalny or not, this is still thoroughly entertaining and insightful film making.

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