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This film is adapted from the novel of the same name by Giuliano da Empoli.

Although inspired by historical events, it remains a work of art.

The characters, as well as their words and opinions, are fictional.

Since Vadim Baranov was no longer an advisor...

...of Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, the Tsar...

...the legends about him, far from dying out, had multiplied.

Most powerful men derive their aura from their position.

When they lose it, it's like a hold has been ripped out.

Baranov was of a different race.

According to some, he had retired to a monastery on Mount Athos.

Others swore they had seen him in Ibiza...

...surrounded by cocaine-addled models.

Still others claimed to have spotted him on the Donbass front.

Vadim Baranov moved through life in a whirlwind of enigmas.

The only certainty was his influence on the Tsar.

In fifteen years of service to him...

...he had made a decisive contribution to extending his power.

He was known as the Kremlin Magician...

...the new Rasputin.

He arrived at the President's office in the middle of the night...

...to handle urgent matters.

Perhaps the Tsar himself summoned him on his direct line.

A prominent minister sometimes joined them...

...or the head of a large state-owned company.

But these witnesses shed no light on the matter...

...the nocturnal activities of the Tsar and his advisor.

When I returned to Moscow a few years after his disappearance...

...the memory of Baranov hung like a shadow.

The press persisted in attributing... to him

...the Kremlin's most obscure measures.

As for me...

...my recent essay in Foreign Affairs had caused quite a stir.

It was titled: "Vadim Baranov and the invention of Fake Democracy".

If needed, dial 9.

Have a good day, Mr. Rowland. -You too.

I was on sabbatical from Yale...

...to write the first biography of Yevgeny Zamyatin...

...great Russian writer...

...and an early opponent of Stalin's communist regime.

I was walking in the pale winter light...

...I was leafing through old books.

Zamyatin became my obsession.

He was a visionary.

Not only about Stalin, but about all dictators to come.

From Silicon Valley oligarchs to the Chinese single-party system.

From Mark Zuckerberg to Xi Jinping.

His dystopian novel, We...

...had inspired George Orwell for 1984.

Are Zamyatin taught in American universities?

Zamyatin is the oracle of our time.

Are you staying in Moscow for a long time?

I have something to show you.

Leaving the city...

...endless, dark forests stretched all the way to Siberia.

My curiosity was mixed with apprehension.

In Russia, things generally go rather well.

But when they go wrong, they go very wrong.

Good morning.

Please follow me, Mr. Rowland.

May I take your coat?

I'll bring you some tea.

Do you collect old books?

I don't collect them, I read them.

Big difference.

Are you reading Zamyatin?

I have something to show you that you will appreciate.

Do you know what it is?

A letter from Zamyatin to Stalin.

He asks her for permission to leave the USSR.

"Cher Iossif Vissarionovitch.

"Just as Christians invented the devil..."

"...to personify all forms of evil..."

"...critics made me out to be the devil of Soviet literature."

Zamyatin understood too much, too quickly...

...and made the mistake of writing it down.

Sit down.

Have you read it? -Of course.

You took the time to annotate it.

I am flattered.

Let's not get carried away.

But unlike the others, you understood something.

Not much, but something.

THANKS.

Do you consider yourself an artist?

Let's just say I played a supporting role. Now I'm retired.

Don't you miss the adrenaline rush?

There is no greater pleasure than waking up in the morning...

...to have his coffee...

...and to take his daughter to school.

How did the others react?

My departure? Bad, of course.

At court, everything is forgiven: thieves, murderers, traitors.

But not the deserters.

"Don't you want what we're willing to kill for?"

And the Tsar?

The Tsar is something else entirely.

My father was afraid of that library.

It belonged to my grandfather.

Custine, Gratian, Machiavelli...

...the skeptics, the disillusioned.

Not exactly the Soviet orthodoxy.

But to his credit, he never tried to deprive me of it.

Your father?

He ended up as director of the Party's Academy of Social Sciences.

His only goal was to avoid being woken up at dawn...

...by the KBG knocking at his door.

In his position, it shouldn't have worried him.

No one was safe in the Soviet Union.

Nobody is in Russia, period.

Not me.

Not even you.

In my childhood...

...the most sought-after privilege was the Kremliovka...

...a basket of provisions reserved for apparatchiks.

What are we eating today?

Pirojki au saumon...

...lamb chops.

Ultimately, my problem is that I had a happy childhood.

In Russia, this is not normal.

The entire Russian elite experienced Soviet poverty...

...before accessing the villas of the French Riviera.

She still hasn't gotten over it.

Even the Tsar:

"Me, the kid who grew up in a kommunalka..."

"...in the back of a filthy courtyard in Saint Petersburg..."

"...here I am, received at Buckingham Palace!"

Things have changed. -Not that much.

In your home, money is essential.

In Russia, what matters is proximity to power.

The Soviet system was based on privilege, not cash.

Yesterday there were none. Tomorrow, who knows?

Might as well slam it right away.

Do you know what a vertushka is ?

A phone without a dial...

...allowing the Party bigwigs to communicate directly with you.

Having one was a sign of success.

Look. Here is a vertushka .

Grey, like everything Soviet.

If you find Moscow grey, try Washington.

Over there, they are not grey, they are dead.

In any case, I am banned from entering the USA and Europe.

Is your father still alive? -No.

In his world, he could have survived for a long time.

But Gorbachev arrived with his glass of milk.

His glass of milk?

You don't need to listen to Gorbachev to know that he would destroy the USSR.

All you had to do was look at him.

He would go up to the podium and they would bring him a glass of milk.

Then he doubled the price of vodka...

...and tried to get everyone on milk.

In Russia!

Do you realize?

No wonder everything went haywire.

That was the end of communism and of my father.

He lost everything.

His job, his privileges, his reputation.

And you? What were you doing at the time?

My father wanted me to be a diplomat.

But I didn't want to study. I did odd jobs.

I was reselling TVs and cassette players.

It worked well.

I started earning more than my father, much more.

I was an ignorant kid.

That's why I was better adapted to the new world.

THE NEW RUSSIANS

In the early 1990s...

...Moscow was an electric city.

There were a few brief years full of hope.

Forbidden books were being released every week.

Soljenitsyne, Pasternak, Boulgakov...

...Art and literature magazines were selling in the millions.

The Russians' appetite for freedom was insatiable.

I enrolled at the Moscow Academy of Dramatic Art...

...and I immersed myself in the dissolute life of theatre people.

We were twenty years old and a whole new world was opening up to us...

...just when we had the strength to conquer it.

Open the door!

Open the door, you bitch...

...or I'll blow you up!

We were too excited to sleep more than three or four hours a night.

We were convinced that our turn had come...

...to rebuild society on new foundations.

We could see pieces that had come from Europe...

...discussing until dawn with the actors and directors.

Do you really think that freedom will change everything...?

...that you will live in a world of culture and poetry?

Our generation rejected the system.

Our parents bowed their heads, but we didn't.

At the risk of displeasing you...

...communism was the reign of culture and poetry.

How can you say that?

Under communism, being a failure...

...was the only way to remain dignified.

At least we weren't making any deals.

Get lost!

Kiss my ass !

Perfect.

You impressed me.

Oh yes ?

I wanted to tell you this because it rarely happens to me.

That's interesting.

You are not just anyone.

What impressed you? -You.

Your performance.

What a performance!

You didn't just sing?

You call that singing?

What do you call that?

Trendy nonsense.

I did it to be helpful.

To whom?

To the KGB agents who are watching us.

I'm delighted to give them something to spice up their relationships.

That's a shame. You have talent.

To do what New Yorkers were doing 15 years ago?

You are a true Soviet.

You think the world is waiting for you.

And you're not a real Soviet?

My parents were poor fools.

Hippies.

They shuttled me from community to community.

Today they are old, sick, and have lost faith in their values.

One thing is for sure, I will not end up like them.

I have a role for you.

Will you deign to take me seriously?

A role.

Like the ones offered to actresses?

Like the ones offered to actresses.

Alas...

...I am not an actress and I have no desire to be one.

I would even say that I've always done everything...

...so as not to be.

Are you familiar with Yevgeny Zamyatin?

An icon of the most conventional avant-gardes.

That's not my thing.

With all due respect, you are wrong.

I will be staging his novel Nous at the Institute of Dramatic Art.

You're taking risks. You're starting to interest me.

Do you have a car? -Yes.

Walk me back.

I'm fed up with this evening.

In a hurry?

Am I going too fast for you?

I don't know how I establish contact with the planet Ksenia...

...but I knew at once that, even if I were to live a thousand years...

...I would never meet anyone like her.

Everyone in starting position.

Scissors, D-503, in position.

What scene are we filming?

Always the same, Yuri. The mirror scene.

Am I sitting or lying down?

You are lying down, and when you feel the light of the Integral, you sit up.

Above all, be repetitive.

It was excellent, thank you.

The dinner was too casual. Be more methodical.

Is the Complete Collection ready? - Ready!

Continue your actions...

...and when you feel the light of the Complete...

...you all get up and walk towards the windows.

Milana, ready?

Yes !

A nasty case!

Clearly, you have developed a soul.

Is it very serious, doctor?

Incurable.

But what exactly is this about? I don't understand.

How can this be explained?

Take a surface.

Here, this mirror.

You know that an ordinary mirror reflects reality.

He absorbs it...

...and keeps track of everything.

My brothers!

You all know it...

...over there in the city, they are building a spaceship: the Integral.

Down with the Complete Collection! Down with it!

My brothers.

The Complete Collection must belong to us.

And it will belong to us.

When she ascends to heaven for the first time...

...we'll be the ones on board.

Because we have the Builder of the Integral with us.

He left the city, he came here with me...

...to be among you.

Long live the Manufacturer!

His ambitions may have been vague...

...but the avant-garde Moscow theatre was unlikely to satisfy them.

I know. I lived through those years in Moscow.

There were no limits.

Everything was collapsing and rebuilding itself at the same time.

It was fascinating and frightening at the same time.

Ksenia and I lived in a bubble...

...when life around was overflowing with possibilities.

Every day, a former classmate would come to see me with an idea...

...a matter to be developed.

First on his grandfather's bicycle...

...then in an armored Bentley, surrounded by bodyguards.

That's more or less what happened with Dmitry.

Sidorov ? -Sidorov, oui.

Dmitry Sidorov.

I knew him from high school.

He was now leading the Young Communists at the university.

Don't picture an apparatchik.

In the late 1980s...

...the student cooperative was the incubator of Russian capitalism.

I loved it when he told me about his adventures.

I wanted to write a play about entrepreneurs like him.

Have you seen Dmitry?

Five minutes ago. Try the bar.

A new social class, which appeared out of nowhere.

That was quite surprising.

Bitch !

Glad to see you.

This cafe was my first business...

...but it helped me launch more lucrative businesses.

Not all of them are legal.

There's no more legality, forget it. Let me tell you.

Stop writing. Listen. I'm your mom.

Once upon a time... I acquired a stock of cognac.

Fake cognac. -Fake, real, who cares.

I'm selling it for $50 a bottle.

Do you hear?

Nothing. Nobody wants it.

I put them at $500, people fight to buy them.

You didn't stop at the cognac.

Computers, faded jeans, souvenirs, software...

...thanks to the student cooperative.

A few minor scams. I find it hard to believe you.

You can't fool them!

These are anecdotes to amuse your audience.

It's a room.

I've come up with a scheme...

...to facilitate payments between state-owned enterprises.

I borrow money, I lend money to others.

Actually, it's what we call a bank, but...

...in this country, who knows what a bank is?

Stupid questions!

Indeed, I created the first commercial bank in Russia.

How? I had found a book.

Commercial banks in capitalist countries.

A remarkable work.

He described the workings of the banking system simply and in detail.

I thought to myself: not bad!

Would you say you are greedy?

Absolutely, yes.

I wasn't, but I am becoming more and more so.

It's an advantage in my field. I have the personality of a banker.

I like money.

Nice suit. -Nice shirt.

You have good reading material!

They're running late. You still had your mustache.

Journalists are always a step behind. You already know that.

What a hick mustache.

You did the right thing by shaving it.

Is your piece progressing?

My coin on you? -Yes.

I won't write it. -Why?

It's over. You can't tell me the truth anymore.

You're right.

But I was never able to tell you everything.

Nevertheless, you told me a little more.

So, you're the famous Dmitry?

I don't see any other.

Vadim says you are worth 80 million rubles a year.

Is that true? -Maybe, I don't know.

He also says you're a thug.

Oh yes ?

There's nothing wrong with that.

Ulysse Nardin.

A little too flashy to be elegant.

Flashy? Says the girl with a bear on her head.

In my world, it's better to be flashy than elegant to be respected.

Hence that horrible tie.

Eugenio Marinella from Naples, all right !

Beautiful tie.

Never heard of it.

Obviously. It's a tiny shop.

He travels to make custom ties.

Do we make custom-made ties?

In the world I live in, yes.

Do you like champagne? Too flashy?

I should have known. From that encounter, my fate was sealed.

Ksenia would choose Dmitry...

...his vulgarity, his energy.

He sensed it immediately.

Me too.

But for a long time I refused to believe it.

Yes ?

I'm coming, I'm coming.

Am I at a bad time?

I wanted to surprise you.

Let's hurry!

Are you hungry?

Glitz galore!

Caviar !

Since that moment...

...Dmitry started spending a lot of time with us.

And here I was thinking it was out of deference to art...

...to which Ksenia and I had decided to dedicate our lives.

As if culture still had any hold on the real world.

I like that sound.

The flamboyant world of money was Dmitry's natural habitat.

Nothing could have deterred him.

But he wanted Ksenia, so he agreed to stay with us...

...in the ruins of the city of the dead.

As the months went by...

...Ksenia became increasingly grateful for his generosity.

Everything that had marked the beginning of our relationship...

...readings, concerts, discussions until dawn...

...had given way to activities more focused on money.

Gallery and nightclub openings...

...dinners at the White Sun or the Ermitazh.

Ksenia was becoming more and more intoxicated by Dmitry's lifestyle every day.

Vadia danse!

Vadia! Smile!

I'm smiling!

Communism is dead. There is a whole new world to invent.

You will be part of it.

Vadia doesn't like going out.

All he loves is going home.

I remember waking up one night and looking at her for a long time.

I felt so tired, yet I hadn't done anything yet.

I had nurtured the illusion that Ksenia would perceive my greatness.

But, day after day...

...I noticed that the way she saw me was changing.

What had taken the form of irony was turning into contempt.

"You are stronger than me because you don't love me...."

I wanted to tell him.

My suffering only increased his boredom.

Stop.

Stop!

Stop, you fucking whore!

Do you want some water?

Dmitry, for the tenth time, you're driving too aggressively.

There's nothing I can do about it.

Let Vadim drive or I'll hitchhike home.

Do you want to sit in the back?

You're cute, but I'm even sicker in the back.

I forgot to tell you something.

I'm listening.

I'm leaving.

Is that all it does for you?

You saw me with Dmitry. You think I missed that?

Between us, it's been over for a long time.

Approach.

You don't bother me.

I was afraid of waking you up.

Sit down.

I finally have an excuse to stay in bed all day.

I reread the classics and doze off. That suits me.

There is the illness.

This might seem paradoxical to you...

...but the illness is not necessarily a serious matter.

The serious stuff...

...like effort, work...

...are the burden of healthy people.

The dying have nothing left to do.

They can enjoy their days.

I left Ksenia.

I know.

You will have the opportunity to rebuild your life.

I expected to suffer a lot, but...

...I feel light. And strong.

You see.

The theatre is no longer enough for me.

Losing Ksenia made me ambitious.

Are you ambitious now?

That's unexpected.

But I take it as good news.

I can no longer tolerate the writer's powerlessness in the face of reality.

I want to be an actor of my time...

...not a mere witness.

You know what?

I'll leave you your era.

And without regrets.

It's Sputnik.

The only one who has the right to enter here.

Come here, say hello.

My daughter loves it.

Finally, my father had a stroke and died very quickly.

The ceremony didn't exactly make headlines.

Four yokels were following the hearse in a battered car...

...overtaken at breakneck speed by the SUVs of the nouveau riche.

He died too late.

He would probably have preferred a proper funeral.

But in the end, he didn't care.

Finally, I hope so.

I needed to clear my head...

...and Moscow in the mid-90s was the ideal place.

Imagine all these young people...

...who suddenly saw the paths of the world open up before them.

They could become whatever they wanted...

...to make a fortune, to travel the world.

It was enough to drive you mad.

The level of violence was unbelievable.

They were shooting from all sides and for the most trivial reasons.

Private militias were escorting insignificant men...

...until the day they jumped in the air.

Converting my theatre experience into a career as a TV producer...

...was like going from a horse-drawn cart to a Lamborghini.

A day...

...I was discussing Mayakovsky while drinking tea.

The next day, I was sipping a latte...

...in an open-plan office designed by Dutch architects.

Forget the First Channel, forget state television.

RTP is a private company.

We're going to play games and do politics.

But in a different way.

The Soviets tried to suffocate the country under a pall of boredom.

First rule: don't be boring.

There is one project that stands out from the rest. This one.

Do you know why?

Because it contains all the Russian stereotypes...

...without exception.

The provincial babushka ...

...the nihilistic student...

...the ambitious little whore.

I read it. It's rubbish.

I've read them all, they're all rubbish. -Especially that one.

Except that it will work.

We don't just produce shows.

All other institutions have collapsed.

It's up to television to show the way.

A reality show about schools...

...where young girls are taught how to attract nouveau riche men?

Not bad. Does it really exist?

It definitely exists. And it works like a charm.

My dream is to be an international superstar.

My dream is to buy my mother the most beautiful house in Krasnoyarsk.

My dream is to be the trophy wife...

...of Russia's richest oligarch...

...and to live in Monte Carlo.

She's doing a great job.

Seriously, she's great.

This is an excellent project...

...and this girl definitely belongs there.

At that time, the RTP channel...

...belonged to a mathematician turned billionaire, Boris Berezovsky.

He had bought an old palace on Novokuznetskaïa.

This should have been the headquarters of his company...

...but Berezovsky made something much more special out of it.

A kind of club, the LogoVaz club.

It was a very exclusive club.

The cream of the crop in politics, business, entertainment, and crime.

Imagine the scene.

We are in the Caucasus, in Chechnya.

I have before me a warlord...

...who took Russian officers hostage.

This is no laughing matter.

He has already beheaded one of them.

But this isn't about politics. He wants money.

Right away. I don't have any cash on me.

I don't walk around with wads of cash.

But I see him eyeing my watch.

A Patek Philippe Nautilus like this one.

So I said to him:

"Do you like my watch?"

"Do you know what she's worth? More than your hostages."

He told me, "I know exactly what it's worth. $800,000 used."

That amazed me. He knew the exact price.

Roustam was far from being stupid.

He told me:

"If you bring back the hostages..."

"...the ad you'll get on TV will be worth more than $800,000."

The soldier's fixed gaze. Zero bullshit.

"You'll benefit. Shall we do business?"

I give him my watch, I bring back the hostages.

It was the lead story on all the news broadcasts.

At that time, my modest exploits as a TV producer...

...sometimes earned me an invitation to the LogoVaz club.

Generally, Berezovsky would summon me to discuss a project...

...or to recommend a distant cousin...

...or a no less vague mistress.

Between.

Bitch! -Boris.

Our friend Vadia is a magician.

Thanks to him...

...we crush the competition.

Do you want to leave it at that?

Not sure I understand.

In this country, you run the same risks whether you're involved or not.

Let me tell you my story...

...you'll understand.

I was peacefully in my corner.

I had built a small, modern, and clean business.

To my knowledge, your business wasn't that clean.

You were recycling stolen cars straight from the factory.

I was doing what everyone else was doing. -Only worse.

You weren't very discerning about your associates.

Excuse me. -Anyway.

One day, a bastard shows up and wants to steal the business from me.

What's he doing? He's opening a competitor's business...

...to compete in the market like in the USA or Europe?

No, that's not what he did.

That son of a bitch loads an old Opel with TNT...

...and the train station on my way.

When I walk by, he presses the remote control and boom.

Plus de Berezovsky.

Finally, that was the plan.

Unfortunately for him, it didn't work.

I found myself with my driver's head in my arms.

I survived.

But that day, I understood that if you don't take care of power...

...the power takes care of you.

I went to Switzerland for 15 days to receive medical treatment.

And you know what I did when I got back to Moscow?

You learned to play tennis.

Not without difficulty. I hate this sport.

You hate all sports.

The old President, Boris Yeltsin, was on the decline.

Vodka abuse, they said.

He had a sports club built for himself on Sparrow Hill.

He spent his time playing tennis.

It was the only way to approach him.

Let's be clear, Boris was finished.

The elections are coming soon, and his poll numbers are at their lowest...

...His whole little court of schemers had them at zero.

They quickly realized that I was their only hope.

All was not lost.

Listen to me...

...Boris Nikolaïevitch.

Russia still needs you. Your courage and your...

...integrity.

Nobody loves me anymore.

I saved democracy...

...but democracy here means...

...that everyone became poor.

Except for a few clever people like you...

...who collected the winnings.

If you give me...

...control of state television...

...I'll put together an election campaign like no one has ever seen before.

Right now you're in the hole. In two months, you'll be at the top.

This is how I took control of the First Channel, RTP.

But be careful.

I kept my word. I resurrected him in the polls.

You've pretty much sunk his rivals.

Nostalgics for communism, easy to take down.

You were defending your own interests and those of the oligarchs.

Yes.

That's true. So what?

That's the democratic process. -Yes.

According to a very vague conception of democracy.

As the meetings progressed...

...the old man started to have fun.

The only problem:

...two weeks before the vote, he has a heart attack.

It was hot.

The day he was to record his final address to the nation.

Obviously, we cancelled everything.

But after a few days, rumors began to circulate.

He had to show himself.

But the doctor refused to let him leave his house.

Too risky. So we decided, to create the illusion...

...to transport the furniture from the Kremlin to his home.

The flags, on their stands.

The one from the Federation on the left.

Be careful of the gap.

The President steps down.

Hello, Boris Nikolayevich!

Come see what we've done.

It's a perfect replica of your office in the Kremlin.

No one will see the difference.

Help him sit down.

Dear fellow citizens...

...That's why...

...the homeland...

Let's start again.

Misha, can you slow down the teleprompter?

Again.

Dear fellow citizens...

...July 3rd...

...on election day...

...you don't...

...you won't just vote for Yeltsin...

We're not going to make it.

Make her lips move.

We will show excerpts from his old speeches.

Yeltsin was re-elected by a landslide...

...then he fell back into a lethargic state.

He suffered two more heart attacks.

During the 4 years of his second term...

...Berezovsky was the real boss of Russia.

The oligarchs picked up everything they could.

That's how my comrade Dmitry Sidorov...

...acquired a fossil fuel giant for just 168 million.

It was going to bring him 3 billion a year.

Olya!

Berezovsky sensed the changing tide.

The Russians were tired and needed order.

They had grown up in a homeland and found themselves in a supermarket.

The challenge was to find a solution before someone else did.

So, yes.

I have friends in the Kremlin.

I sometimes lend a hand.

But the scenario has completely changed.

It is no longer a question of supporting the current regime.

We need to invent something new.

Something and someone.

The President will not finish his term.

Someone to embody it. That's easy.

But we need...

...first of all, a party that unites everyone.

The Unity Party.

What do you think, Vadia?

I already have an emblem.

The bear.

Symbol of the Russian soul.

Do you want to be part of it?

I don't know. I like my job.

It's the same job.

I'm simply suggesting you take it to the next level.

Stop making up stories...

...and invent reality.

With me.

THE LOUBIANKA FSB Headquarters

The head of the FSB would make a good candidate.

The old man has confidence in himself.

He has proven himself in decisive moments.

He's a modest man. You'll like him.

Mr. Putin will receive you.

Enter.

Sit down.

I know why you're here.

Of course. You're the best-informed man in the country.

I've been thinking, Boris Abramovich.

You see...

...the intelligence services have all the advantages of politics...

...without any of its drawbacks.

I am at the center of the system, here.

I have a good view. I can hear and see everything.

I can effectively intervene to protect the President and his family.

I've done it before and I'll do it again.

If you drag me away from here to put me in the government...

...I will end up crushed like the other Prime Ministers...

...of recent years, of recent months.

And you will lose the most loyal guardian of the state.

If we don't move quickly...

...in a year there will be neither a President nor a family to protect and...

...the first measure of the new Kremlin leader...

...will be to replace you.

Why me?

I am a civil servant.

Okay, I did...

...a few public speeches...

...but it was never groundbreaking.

The President enters a room, sniffs the air, and everyone...

...is won over in two minutes, laughing, crying...

...as if they were chatting in his kitchen.

I'm not made of that stuff.

If I may, Vladimir Vladimirovich...

...that's exactly it.

The President's personality is unique.

His human qualities enabled our country to...

...from the old Soviet Union to today's Russia.

But it's worn out.

We need someone different...

...which marks a break.

If the President appoints you Prime Minister...

...you will embody legitimate authority.

The Russians need stability and security.

You are young, athletic, and energetic.

Something inside you tells you:

"I can assume full responsibility for the command."

Your career in the secret services is a guarantee of reliability.

Being a man of few words will work in your favor.

Not against you.

The Russians are tired of the charlatans.

The campaign we have in mind...

...will not be made up of gatherings and empty promises.

The challenge will be to make you appear...

...like a politician of a new type.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, I don't know much about politics...

...but I know a thing or two about communication.

There are two dimensions...

...in a society.

The horizontal axis represents everyday life.

The vertical axis represents authority.

Soviet society was hierarchical...

...and suddenly, by ceasing to be Soviet...

...it became horizontal.

Too much horizontality is synonymous with chaos.

The Russians dream of verticality.

A psychoanalyst would say...

...that they are waiting for a leader who will make them forget the mother's language...

...and once again imposes the father's word.

Public opinion forms quickly.

We only have a few months to convince the Russian people...

...that you are the right man for the job.

And don't forget, you won't be alone.

I will be there to help and advise you...

...when you need it.

It's in the bag.

It's not a Nobel Prize in science, but it will do the job.

I nodded and laughed with him...

...but things were more complicated...

...which Berezovsky did not perceive.

When he spoke to him with his usual joviality...

...I had perceived a shadow of annoyance in Putin's eyes.

And then there was that flash of irony...

...when Boris had promised to guide him step by step.

As if the mere idea of ​​being guided by this man...

...was extremely comical in the eyes of the FSB chief.

Hurry, Vadim Alexeïevitch.

Vladimir Vladimirovitch attend.

Good day sir.

What do you recommend?

We have excellent scallops...

...with cauliflower mousseline.

A bowl of kasha.

Two. -Good, sir.

I have a lot of respect for Berezovsky.

I am grateful to him...

...of his offer, but if...

...I'm embarking...

...in this...

...adventure...

...it will be by relying on my own strength...

...not on someone else's.

The President of Russia cannot...

...nor should it...

...to be subject to anyone.

That's inconceivable to me.

Your analysis the other day was very interesting...

...but first we need to clarify one point.

If you accept my offer...

...you will work exclusively for me...

...Vadim Alexeïevitch.

I've been thinking about your concept of verticality.

He is powerful.

But it cannot remain abstract.

We need a well-defined stage in which to restore the verticality of power.

Otherwise, we will appear defenseless...

...like all other politicians.

Indeed, Vladimir Vladimirovich...

...but it's not enough to just snap your fingers.

There are unforeseen events.

Unexpected events are always the result of incompetence.

It depends on the circumstances. -The circumstances?

They are right before our eyes.

Can't you see them?

Islamic fundamentalists.

They are no longer satisfied with Chechnya.

They want Dagestan...

...Ingushetia, Bashkiria.

If we let them do it...

...in a few years, nothing will remain of the Russian Federation.

Excuse me, but I would think twice before getting involved in this mess.

In recent years...

...Chechnya has killed more political careers in Moscow...

...so many enemies on the battlefield.

None of them devoted enough energy to it.

All these politicians wanted to start a war...

...who didn't dare say his name.

A humanitarian war...

...like the Americans.

I'm talking about something else.

The Nobel Peace Prize does not interest me.

What interests me...

...it is to restore the integrity of the Russian Federation.

I'm not talking about geopolitics.

That's not my area of ​​expertise.

What I can say, however...

...because politically, it's suicide.

That's where you're wrong.

You are designing a Western-style election campaign:

...two teams of economists discussing PowerPoint presentations.

In Russia...

...power...

...that's something else entirely.

That day, I didn't quite understand what Putin was implying...

...but I left that lunch with one certainty:

Berezovsky had just made the biggest mistake of his life.

The first days of August...

...Boris Yeltsin appointed a new Prime Minister, unknown to most.

Vladimir Putin's nomination was met with skepticism.

He was the 5th head of government installed by Yeltsin in less than a year.

Our offices were located in the former Palace of the Soviets...

...nicknamed the Russian White House.

A huge block of mothballs on the banks of the Moskova.

One floor had been freed up for the new recruits.

Putin knew he had little time to establish himself in the eyes of public opinion.

He didn't intend to lose any.

Tell that son of a bitch...

...that the Prime Minister wants results on the ground.

It doesn't matter how.

We are not in the era of the media, but of politics.

We are here to produce results...

...not flimsy excuses.

I received your surveys. Help me analyze them.

I'll join you. I have to see Goussinski.

We are on the right track.

Who cares about Dmitri Anatolievitch...

...we should have already arrived.

Where is Goussinski?

Unfortunately, he was unable to come.

Are we not important enough to him?

He is abroad. -And you are? His messengers?

We control the chain.

Then you will tell Mr. Goussinski the following:

The policy of the Russian Federation...

...is not defined in the offices of NTV.

That would not cross Mr. Goussinski's mind.

I'm watching the Koukly...

...your political puppets.

Sometimes I find it funny. It makes me laugh.

Unfortunately, the Prime Minister does not share your sense of humor.

He suspects Mr. Goussinski of wanting to harm him.

No, never in my life.

It's a shame he's not here to explain himself.

You portray the Prime Minister as a dwarf.

That's incorrect...

...A stunted child manipulated by the oligarchs.

In the minds of comedians, it's more like a child.

Exactly.

And that's a laughing matter? A childish dwarf?

It's a satirical show.

The Prime Minister defines the line between satire and insult...

...especially during election periods.

The Prime Minister has drawn a red line.

Mr. Goussinski will easily guess where she is.

Otherwise, he'll learn the hard way.

Good day !

I was working 18 hours a day, going from one meeting to the next with the PM...

...each involving as many historic decisions.

But the more I sank deeper into the routine of governing men...

...the more the world seemed full of misunderstandings...

...and missed opportunities.

That's when the unexpected happened.

One autumn night, shortly after midnight...

...a huge roar tore through the darkness of the capital.

Guryanova Street, on the outskirts of Moscow...

...hundreds of kilos of explosives...

...cut a nine-story residential building in half.

Dozens of sleeping families...

...were engulfed by the explosion.

Four days later...

...a second explosion rocked the city at 5 a.m...

...and destroyed another building in the suburbs.

More than one hundred victims.

That was our 9/11.

Until then, the war in Chechnya seemed distant.

But when buildings started exploding around Moscow...

...the Russians found themselves with the war at home.

Of course...

...You know...

...what people say.

They say we pulled it off.

Finally, us: the FSB.

This is not just a rumor.

There are serious and consistent indications.

Frankly, I don't know.

If this is a secret, thank God, no one has confided it to me.

But why would we have done that?

Our victory was assured.

To instill fear.

So that the Russians feel threatened by the Chechens.

And to justify the Second Chechen War.

Which came at just the right time to prepare public opinion...

...to the advent of an authoritarian regime.

I don't like to express myself in public.

The people need to hear your voice.

Here, on a state visit, not from the Kremlin.

Give them a sense of urgency.

I am not an actor.

I will limit myself to a simple statement.

You allegedly ordered the bombing of Grozny airport...

...in response to the attacks.

Don't you think that...

...risk of making the situation worse?

I'm tired of these kinds of questions.

We will strike the terrorists wherever they hide.

If they are in an airport, we will strike the airport.

If they're in the toilet, excuse my language...

...we'll go and kill them even in the toilets.

You have no idea of ​​the impact of that sentence...

...on the Russian public.

Finally, the voice of command and control...

...which the Russians had stopped hearing.

Stalin's voice?

Not Yeltsin's, in any case.

Nor that of Gorbachev.

On that day, Putin became the Tsar.

THE VERTICAL OF POWER

Mr. Prime Minister, we cannot land in Goudermes.

Visibility is insufficient.

I plan to spend New Year's with our troops.

We need to land.

We need to land!

We need 150m of visibility.

We barely have 100. It's too dangerous.

We have troops stationed in Dagestan.

They are ready for review. That could be an option.

If the Tsar wanted to celebrate the New Year in Chechnya...

...that's where we would go.

At 1 a.m., aboard jeeps, we took the mountain pass road.

33e division, lieutenant-colonel Fédorov.

Welcome to the base, Mr. Putin.

Gentlemen, what you are doing is very important.

People believe in you. I came to tell you that.

We are proud of you. You work hard.

I know what you did; it was very brave.

I want you to know that the Russian people...

...thinking of you...

...and is proud of you.

Good year.

Wait.

I would like to drink to the health of the injured and wish...

...to all those present, a happy new year...

...but we have serious tasks ahead of us...

...you all know that.

We are not only fighting for our honor and dignity...

...but to put an end to Russia's debacle.

We cannot afford a second of weakness.

If we let our guard down...

...those who are dead...

...will have died in vain.

I suggest we put our glasses down.

We'll have a drink, but later.

I'm leaving.

I am leaving before the end of my term.

I understood that it was necessary.

Russia must begin...

...this new millennium with new political leaders...

...and I leave you in complete confidence...

...with Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin.

The Yeltsin era is over.

Your friend Berezovsky needs to understand...

...that I'm fed up with these stupid memos.

I thought he was our friend.

Boris is a very intelligent man...

...but his intelligence does not protect him from his stupidity.

Let him in.

Boris Abramovitch.

Approach.

Sit down.

I read your messages...

...some of your memos.

You've always given good advice. I'm listening.

Volodia, you made me wait an hour.

You wanted this interview.

We're here.

Vas-y.

I'll be brief.

We are becoming too negative.

Too dark. It's war, we get it.

You are a great general...

...you will lead us to victory. But let's make an effort.

Let's give these poor Russians a little hope.

Otherwise, instead of voting for you, they'll throw themselves out the window.

Meetings, concerts...

...commercials, posters!

We need to make ourselves heard.

Who will pay? -Me, of course.

Have you given up on free advertising space?

That's correct. It's a choice, our strategy.

We'll see if the facts prove us wrong.

If you continue like this, people will forget you're a candidate.

Don't be ridiculous, Boris.

I have been serving as interim president for 3 months. We are the government.

Our campaign is about current events, what we are doing...

...the history we are writing.

Nobody believes in advertising anymore.

Facts are the only form of advertising that interests us.

The Tsar had restored the vertical structure of power...

...and the voters were grateful to him.

He was elected president of the Russian Federation in the first round.

Berezovsky has stopped bombarding the Kremlin with unanswered calls.

Admittedly, his journalists mocked the pomp and circumstance of the enthronement...

...but Boris was expecting something else:

...an opportunity to show the Tsar who was in charge.

SOCHI Summer residence of Russian Presidents

I remember that you prefer...

...perfectly.

Thank you for remembering that.

Sir...

...On August 12, 2000, the Kursk...

...one of the largest nuclear submarines...

...sunk during an exercise in the Barents Sea.

There were one hundred men on board.

Some died instantly.

Others were trapped at the bottom of the sea.

This was the opportunity Berezovsky had been waiting for.

We hired a helicopter to monitor the area of ​​the shipwreck.

Has she been identified? -Yes.

The news has just come in. No help is on site.

Outrageous. That's what needs to be denounced.

Russian experts refuse to get involved.

Look elsewhere.

We have a team in Germany. NATO has offered its assistance...

...but the Russian navy refused it.

They are spy ships.

Russia cannot humiliate itself in front of them.

Can't he humiliate himself in front of them?

Ask the families what they think.

That's what we do. - Television is about emotion.

The emotion is all about the families. Can you imagine their anguish?

Their loved ones, perhaps still alive, locked in a sealed compartment...

...and help that never comes!

How long will it take ?

Our sons are paid $50 a month...

...and they're stuck in this tin can!

What was the point of raising my son? Do you have children?

Who can understand us?

Not you, people in power. You never understand anything!

All you think about is getting fat!

Our sailors don't have enough to live on and you're letting them die!

The situation was out of control.

I rushed to Sochi.

I didn't understand why Putin wasn't there.

What do you want me to do?

They're all dead, that's obvious.

We'll know when we reach them.

According to all experts, there are survivors.

That's a fact. We have to save them.

Whether they are dead or not, Berezovsky is trying to harm me.

Everyone is waiting for you to act.

I will act when I deem it appropriate.

Your composure has done a lot for your popularity...

...but it turns against you.

The Russian people are suffering and you are not with them.

This is serious.

Since the authorities are still doing nothing...

...RTP organized a fundraising campaign for the families of the sailors.

Call this number for help...

Do you realize?

They destroyed the state, they looted it for ten years.

They ruined our army and now they're organizing fundraisers!

Those bastards should just sell...

...their chalets in Saint-Moritz!

Call me that son of a bitch!

Do you realize what you're doing?

Your channel gives a voice 24 hours a day...

...to prostitutes playing the role of sailors' wives.

What are you talking about? You're delusional.

These are their real wives.

You are state television, Boris.

And you are plotting against the presidency.

What does that mean?

What does that mean, exactly? I'm asking you a question!

I have a question for you, Vladimir Vladimirovitch.

What are you doing on holiday on the Black Sea?

Shouldn't you be in Murmansk?

And where are you?

He's laughing... Where are you?

On the French Riviera? What are you doing here?

Finally! I'm not the President. Who cares where I am?

And it just so happens that I'm in Moscow.

Think about it, Volodia.

If you go to comfort the sailors' wives...

...you'll make the ratings explode.

And our channel will put all its firepower at your service.

And you know it's considerable.

SO ?

We're going back to Moscow. We're organizing this fucking meeting.

We have no choice.

And as soon as we got out of that mess...

...we'll take care of your friend Boris.

How could Boris have imagined...

...that he would tolerate a relationship of equals...

...with one of his subjects?

All the oligarchs were wrong.

By deciding to bet on Putin...

...they thought they were changing the straw man, not the system.

Getting his television from Berezovsky was a piece of cake.

He did not control the majority, only 49%.

All that was needed was to inform the CEO of RTP...

...that from now on, he would take his orders from the Kremlin.

He doesn't mean you any harm. He respects you.

Stay quietly in Moscow and do whatever business you want.

But give up on politics.

Politics is his business.

Putin is a pure product of the KGB.

Of the most ferocious kind.

He will put Russia in chains.

And everything we've done over the last ten years to become a normal country...

...will be swept away.

Even you, Vadia.

You are building a regime worse than the USSR.

At least, back then...

...the Party was muzzling the KGB's watchdogs.

Now, the Party no longer exists.

The FSB is worse than the KGB.

Who will stop them? You?

Definitely not. You've become one of them.

They are ferocious beasts.

They come from nothing.

They carved their way through with sledgehammers.

No rules, no limits.

They are hungry.

An atavistic hunger.

They were humiliated.

They come from centuries of humiliation.

They have to take everything, right now.

Because they know that the wheel turns.

Perhaps, Boris.

I don't know.

But I know that Russia has always been like that.

With an axe.

UN HEADQUARTERS New York

Cautiously, Berezovsky chose exile in London.

Meanwhile, we flew to New York.

When you reach the summit...

...politics propels you onto the global stage without preparation.

The world's elite become your peers.

But they form a narrow circle.

They had time to learn the basic rules.

You may be feared and respected in your country...

...here, you're just the new kid on the block.

The Waldorf Astoria is the best hotel.

The protocol reserved a floor for us. Twenty rooms.

Penthouse ?

Non.

For what ?

The top three floors are reserved year-round by the Saudis.

It will take less than an hour.

15 minutes to get to the studio, 30 minutes for the interview and 15 minutes back.

That's a great win for us.

What is this ?

It's frozen.

The motorcade of the US president is moving.

No one else can move.

How long does it last?

It depends.

So, what's it like to be a spy?

Not very different from being a journalist.

We gather information, we synthesize it...

...and it is presented to decision-makers who can benefit from it.

Did you enjoy doing that?

Intelligence gathering allowed me to broaden my perspective...

...to develop certain qualities...

...management skills. Focus on priorities.

A learning experience.

The Kursk tragedy moved the entire world.

Tell me, what happened?

What happened to the submarine?

It sank.

If Martians...

...were seizing power in Moscow...

...the US would immediately recognize them as a legitimate government...

...provided that they do not infringe upon their interests...

...and continue to treat them like bosses.

The problem is that they believe they have won the Cold War.

But the Soviet Union...

...did not lose it.

The Cold War ended because a dictatorship was brought to an end.

It's not the same thing.

The Warsaw Pact has been dissolved.

They were offered peace...

...not surrender.

They should remember that.

From time to time.

Lemon t'estime.

I thought he despised me.

He is a visionary.

Everyone has their place in their party.

So, what do you think of my revolutionary vanguard?

The Kremlin is not shaking in its boots.

The Kremlin is quite wrong. Sit down.

So, how was the trip?

You know how it is over there.

Still quite fun, I'd say.

New York can be fun, if you avoid the Americans.

Which one do you prefer, Edward?

This one.

Did you go to one of their social dinners?

All the men studied at Princeton or Yale.

Their children go to the same schools.

At least, younger...

...I could have sex with a little blonde wife in the toilets.

The discreet charm of the bourgeoisie.

It's the same everywhere.

No, Vadia.

America destroyed the bourgeoisie.

The bourgeoisie had values.

These people only believe in numbers.

Boring as hell.

The problem is not imperialism...

...that's American culture.

You were interested in it before it swallowed you and spat you out.

When I saw Yeltsin...

...to transform Russia into a low-cost version of the American hospice...

...I decided to found the National Bolshevik Party.

Do you know why I named it that?

To make you furious!

Naz-Bol!

We're gathering ex-Stalinists...

...homosexuals and punks...

...anarchists, skinheads...

...religious fanatics...

...from Buddhists to Orthodox Christians.

The most difficult thing is to prevent them from killing each other.

Trust them, it will come.

You don't understand.

These young people want to escape the boredom of a mundane life.

They are in search of heroism.

It would be a shame to ruin that.

Can you pass me a cigarette, Sergei?

I need to walk.

I had always considered Limonov to be a brilliant sociopath...

...completely devoid of political sense.

I wasn't ready to agree with him yet.

But his arguments appeared to me for what they were.

Not the result of rigorous analysis...

...but much more than a chance intuition.

THE END OF THE OLIGARCHS

Vladimir Vladimirovitch...

...Vadim Alexeïevitch is here.

Enter.

Where does my popularity stand? The elections are approaching.

Nothing to worry about.

Around 60%. The next candidate only gets 12%.

They are negligible.

There's a Russian who's more popular than me.

Stalin.

He has been dead for a while.

You intellectuals denounce the horrors of the gulag.

You believe Stalin was popular despite the massacres. False.

He was popular because of the massacres.

Because he knew how to deal with a thief, a traitor.

You know what he did when the Soviet trains...

...have started to go off the rails? -No.

He had the director shot for sabotage.

That didn't solve the problem, it possibly made it worse...

...but it provided an outlet for the rage.

Rage is a structural given.

There's no point in fighting it, you have to manage it.

Do you want to feed the rage? -Yes.

The people want a head.

Which ?

That of the most arrogant of oligarchs.

Dmitry Sidorov.

Your ex-friend.

It seems he stole your wife.

You should be happy.

It didn't last. It's far from me.

He is preparing to sell a majority stake in his oil company...

...à Exxon Mobil.

He has been working there for a long time.

He will become 20 billion dollars richer...

...by placing our fossil fuel giant under American control.

A Russian company would acquire an international stature.

No, that's wrong.

He is building up a war chest to challenge me in the 2007 elections.

How do you know? -What do you think? He's being bugged.

"Non-entity."

That's what he and his friends in Washington call me.

A "non-entity".

Or when he explains that once elected, he will change the constitution...

...and will dismantle our nuclear arsenal.

"Non-entity"!

"Non-entity"!

This man...

...made me eat more mud than I can swallow.

I gave the order...

...to have Dmitry Sidorov arrested...

...tomorrow at dawn.

He's going to Siberia. He needs to refuel.

We'll pick it there.

The cameramen and journalists will already be on site.

It's up to you to orchestrate all of this for the media.

That's it.

We're here.

The news spread around the world.

This serves as a reminder that money doesn't protect against everything.

For you Westerners, it's an absolute taboo.

A politician arrested, why not?

But a billionaire? Unthinkable.

Your company is founded on the principle...

...that nothing surpasses money.

My job: to turn Dmitry's downfall into a hit TV show.

It wasn't difficult.

The masses have always loved to see the head of a powerful person fall.

There is no dictator more bloodthirsty than the people.

Once Sidorov was arrested...

...Putin's re-election was a formality.

Therefore...

...the nature of the Russian government has changed profoundly.

The struggle for power has left the public sphere...

...for the Tsar's entourage.

The state was once again dependent on court intrigues.

There are those whose office is close to the Tsar...

...and those who are on his direct line.

Those who accompany him abroad...

...and those who go on holiday to Sochi.

No detail should be overlooked, however small it may be.

From seating plans to a gala dinner...

...during the waiting time in the President's anteroom...

...nothing escapes the vigilance of the courtier.

I adapted to the new regime as I adapt to everything.

But others were much better than me.

Like Igor Sechine?

Especially Igor Sechine.

Like many men of his kind, he drew his strength from being underestimated.

When the time of courtiers came, he was in his element.

He was even the chief courtier.

With Dmitry Sidorov in prison...

...what to do with his business?

Sechine made short work of him.

Judicial seizure, public auction with only one participant...

...and it ends up in the hands of such an opaque financial group...

...that he doesn't even have a phone number.

So, did you get what you wanted?

That's what the Tsar wanted.

He wanted Dmitry's box?

What he wants is to destroy the oligarchs.

And replace them with siloviki like you?

Russia has always needed men of strength.

Military personnel, spies, police officers.

That's why I'm here.

And you take what you want. Well done.

If you want to put it that way, Vadim Alexeïevitch.

Be careful.

He's back from the G20 in Berlin. Tired, in a bad mood.

It's always the same, I'm treated as if I were...

...the president of Finland.

But beware! They should be wary.

The ability to inspire fear...

...is the only weapon a poor person has to preserve their dignity.

I learned it in the street.

Except that by scaring the enemy...

...we risk scaring the markets.

We can't afford that.

The markets have never ruled Russia.

Maybe once.

Perhaps once under Yeltsin.

And what was the result? The law of the jungle.

We need...

...to take control.

Control of all the country's wealth.

Forests, mines, gas, oil.

We will put them at the service of the interests...

...and the greatness of the Russian people.

Like with Dmitry. -What, Dmitry?

The oil monopoly...

...moved from Sidorov's pocket to Sechine's pocket.

What does this have to do with the interests and greatness of the Russian people?

The weather's nice. You should go for a swim before you leave.

Thank you, but another time.

Do you prefer Sochi?

You know why I'm here.

I'd like to hear you say it.

-According to the rumor... -You wouldn't come here because of a rumor.

According to highly reliable sources...

...you are a staunch supporter of the Ukrainian protesters.

Since you know... -Putin is furious.

I was worried. Actually, you bring good news.

Ukraine has been an integral part of Russia for centuries.

Do you really believe that? -I'm just the messenger.

Do you know what he said?

"Go see that asshole."

"Tell him he's going too far..."

"...and tries to reason with him."

Do you know his problem? -I know what you think.

That he is not a politician, but a KGB man, a spy.

He's not a spy. A spy gathers accurate information.

He's a counter-spy. His job is to be paranoid...

...to see conspiracies everywhere...

...to invent them if necessary.

You have been in exile for too long.

You're out of touch.

As if these poor Ukrainians had no reason to revolt...

...against a pro-Russian government.

Do you know who the main supporters of the Ukrainian protesters are?

The CIA, the US State Department...

...the major American foundations...

...George Soros and you...

...to the tune of $30 million...

...or so they say.

That's politics.

And you know what?

That's democracy.

You forgot the meaning of that word a long time ago.

I am not here by choice.

I live in exile, Vadia.

If I set foot in Russia, I'll end up in Siberia, like Sidorov.

Boris...

...despite our differences, the Tsar maintained his friendship with you.

You were able to sell your Russian assets.

1.3 billion, isn't that right?

They were worth much more.

What if I persist?

Are you going to send killers after me?

Look. I have some too.

And they're better than yours...

...because I pay ten times more for them.

I didn't come here to threaten you.

I understand your resentment.

But do not turn against your country.

Putin's Russia is not my homeland.

With all our flaws...

...we had succeeded in building a free country...

...where you could say and do whatever you wanted.

A first in Russian history.

And you've screwed that up in just a few years.

You have brought Russia back to what it has always been:

...a prison on a national scale.

Like in Soviet times.

Is that your boat?

Nothing is ever mine.

Not in the way you mean it.

At the expense of the oligarchs?

Are you scared?

Let your teachers learn this?

My masters?

From what I hear...

...you have placed yourself at the service of power.

If you want.

You don't like Vladimir Vladimirovich very much.

No. You're right.

I don't like power.

Even less so when you tell yourself it's modern art.

Excuse me Vadia, but I find you vile.

Want?

That's a strong word. -You deserve it.

You didn't answer me.

Are we profiting from the money of the oligarchs?

This boat belongs to a Portland entrepreneur.

He invented a software program at the age of 24.

Multimillionaire at 26.

He sold his company to Microsoft at the age of 28.

Since then, he's been bored stiff.

He would like to have another idea in his life...

...but she is slow to come.

Are you sleeping with him?

No way.

When I get the idea for a jewelry line...

...he finances it.

Sometimes he earns a little money.

For him, cherry stems.

And he lends you his boat whenever you feel like it?

Yes.

When the world bores me, which is often...

...I have come here to take refuge.

A gilded cage.

Your comfort zone.

I liked Dmitry.

We had a lot of fun for a few months.

I loved the crazy atmosphere of the time.

And you dumped him too.

I wasn't cruel.

Not this time.

We drifted apart.

Dmitry was interested in oil. It didn't bring him luck.

And for a few years, I preferred Los Angeles...

...to the rest of the world.

Did Hollywood meet your requirements?

Hollywood !

I stayed away from Hollywood.

It's like Moscow.

Only power relations matter.

The rest is negligible.

I loved the desert.

I loved the ocean waves...

...driving on the Pacific Coast Highway.

And when I wanted to go to Japan, I went to Japan.

This is my favorite cove.

Your plane is waiting for you.

Tonight, I will be in Moscow.

How sad.

ORANGE REVOLUTION

MAIDAN, INDEPENDENCE SQUARE UKRAINE - 2004

The following autumn, as expected...

...the situation in Ukraine has deteriorated.

The protesters refused to recognize the election results.

By the hundreds of thousands, they occupied the Maidan...

...the main square of Kyiv, with their chants, their orange ribbons...

...their brightly colored tents and their pro-Western slogans.

Don't get distracted.

Stay on the Maidan!

Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians are joining us!

Suddenly, international observers...

...have come out of the woodwork to contest the election results...

...won by the pro-Russian candidate, Yanukovych.

These elections were notoriously rigged.

As it happens, I was there.

Oh yes ?

We had just voted in Iraq.

American soldiers controlled the polling stations...

...and everyone thought it was great. But not in Ukraine.

No. In Ukraine, a new vote was necessary...

...because the result was not correct.

They called this farce the "Orange Revolution".

The previous year, in Georgia, it was the "Rose Revolution".

Yet another poetic revolution...

...pretty girls and noble ideals...

...but it's still a vassal of the Americans...

...who is propelled to power.

Do you seriously think it takes a CIA conspiracy...?

...so that the Ukrainian people distance themselves from Russia...

...for the benefit of the European Union?

Which people are you talking about?

Do you believe that everyone finds your Europe so desirable?

No need to be a fortune teller, it's Russia's turn soon.

The next color revolution will be in Moscow.

The future president of the Russian Federation...

...will graduate from Yale.

The process seemed inevitable.

The youth had had enough of us, and the Americans...

...exploited this revolt.

To survive, you had to be stronger than them.

The old methods had run their course.

Arrest the agitators, expel the diplomats.

And if we were in a bad mood, we would eliminate our opponents.

I don't believe in any of that.

So I took the risk of adopting a different tactic.

The President has been informed of your arrival. He sends you his greetings.

Alexander Sergeyevich...

...I've been following you for a few years now, with your Night Wolves.

You impress me.

You take these lost souls and...

...you give them a house.

A discipline.

Our group provides them with two things they lack:

brotherhood and strength.

You are not just a group of bikers.

You are true Russian patriots.

We have values.

Those of Russia.

Those of our Holy Mother the Orthodox Church.

I understood that perfectly, Alexandre Sergeïevitch, and so did the President.

Wolves are not just predators...

...they are also the guardians of the forest.

Did you see what happened in Ukraine?

Yes. A revolution.

A coup d'état.

Do you know who took power?

The Americans. -Bravo!

They created a youth organization...

...funded free concerts on the Maidan.

I bet even the orange ribbon was the idea of ​​an advertising executive.

Everything is tailor-made for young people...

...because their energy is the most valuable commodity.

Their frustration...

...their desire to change the world.

Young people need a cause.

And from an enemy.

We need to give them a cause and an enemy...

...before they choose them themselves.

Or worse, that the Americans choose them for themselves.

Except we can't do that.

Look around you, Alexandre.

Just a bunch of bureaucrats in suits and ties.

We are the adults...

...we are the power. We are their true enemy.

You're younger than me, I think.

You took a different path.

You embody freedom and adventure. Your vital energy is intact.

Young people can feel it.

The Tsar is with you. He is your brother.

He is not a bureaucrat.

He likes speed, he does judo, he hunts.

He belongs to the race of conquerors.

Do you think he would come to one of our gatherings?

Of course. -The Night Wolves would be honored.

We will organize a gathering of young patriots.

We will launch the fight against the real enemy:

...the decadent West and its false values.

The Maidan, but upside down.

Exactly.

Russia must become a place...

...where one can vent one's rage against the world...

...while remaining a loyal servant of the Tsar.

In fact, you want to make the revolution impossible.

Let's say we want to abolish the need for it.

Without a drop of vodka...

...Zaldostanov left the Kremlin in a state of drunkenness.

But he didn't know that after him...

...I was receiving the intriguing spokesperson for an Orthodox revival movement.

Then the leader of a particularly tenacious group of young communists.

And the leader of the Spartak supporters.

I recruited them all:

...motorcyclists and hooligans...

...anarchists and skinheads, communists and religious fanatics...

...from the far right to the far left and beyond.

After the events in Ukraine...

...we had to contain the forces of rage.

The monopoly on power was no longer enough...

...we needed a monopoly on subversion.

Who haven't I hired?

The technocrats responsible for the disasters of the 90s...

...the remaining oligarchs...

...the standard-bearers of political correctness...

...vegans...

...To tell the truth...

...I needed these characters in the opposition.

They were my best actors.

Virgin Mary, Mother of God

Chase Putin away, chase Putin away!

Black cassock, gold epaulettes

All parishioners on their knees!

The ghost of liberty is in heaven

Gay Pride is being sent to Siberia

When Pussy Riot invaded the Cathedral of Christ the Savior...

...shouting obscenities against Putin and Patriarch Kirill...

...we gained five points in the polls.

I found them heroic.

They're going about it the wrong way.

They scored an own goal. In politics, that's unforgivable.

It's a double-edged sword.

That made them world-famous.

One second, I'll be right back.

Vadim !

Miss Chekhova.

I am very flattered that you honor me with your presence.

Don't laugh. You're measuring the influence of your living room.

Dear...

...worldly gossip has never influenced power.

Thanks to you, I can rub shoulders with my opponents.

Indeed.

Garry Kasparov is here.

Chess champions never go far in politics.

Vadim Baranov.

The Kremlin wizard. -In person.

You invented a name for your doctrine.

Sovereign democracy.

Russia must be a democracy to benefit from globalization.

I see no trace of democracy in our society, but carry on.

Sovereignty is politically synonymous with stability.

The more stable a regime is, the more competitive it is.

You know what they say about your "sovereign democracy"?

What a great deal to democracy...

...what the electric chair is to the chair.

It's just a clever remark, but it's funny.

You left the French Riviera.

I never stay in one place for long.

You know me. That's not one of my qualities.

Do you live in Moscow?

When I'm here, I stay at the Metropol Hotel.

I rent a suite on a yearly basis.

Is this an invitation?

Do you remember my friend, the dog-man?

Of course. Arseni.

He is a renowned director.

He staged Monteverdi's L'Orfeo .

He transformed the theatre into a pagan basilica.

He calls it a spatial liturgy.

I was her high priestess in Paris.

Do you want to come?

Unless you're no longer interested in this kind of provocation.

Not sure I remember who you are.

I get lost in your labyrinths.

It's a game.

Politics is the only game worth playing.

You've become cynical.

You have reached the limit of your intelligence.

Cynical.

It's possible.

But not only that.

I don't know.

I'll tell you.

Right now, I'm not sure.

Come with me to the opera.

We'll go to the Metropol for dinner.

I'm tired, Ksenia.

What ?

To put your black magic at the service of power?

The other day, I caught sight of my reflection in the mirror...

...but it wasn't me...

...it was my father.

My father's face imprinted on mine...

...despite all my efforts.

Let's go home.

I'm cold.

Last time, you asked me a question.

Do you remember?

You said you needed time.

Now I can answer.

You're not just cynical.

You have chosen...

...to marry your time.

You could just as easily have run away from him.

Do you like this weather? -It's ours.

We are neither better nor worse than him.

I am not blinding myself. I embody the worst of it.

And you think you'll ever have to answer for that?

Do you believe in the future?

Not me.

The future doesn't give a damn about us.

"Our wound is raw under the yoke of this time.

"See...

"...behind the forest where we are walking..."

"...trembling..."

"...like an illuminated castle..."

"...evening already awaits."

Rilke.

I had forgotten.

I have never been fascinated by Saint Petersburg.

It's a museum city, frozen in time.

The Tsar, on the contrary, is only completely at ease there...

...with his true, lifelong friends...

...a mix of former FSB agents and judo black belts

and genuine gangsters who had hit the jackpot.

They both seemed to have stepped out of Richard III.

In just a few years, these shady provincial schemers...

...had accumulated wealth worthy of Gulf emirs.

Outstanding !

A delight.

That's good, guys.

Our new chef's specialty:

...truffle risotto.

You will tell me whether I should keep it or send it back to Italy.

Enjoy your food.

Genia, you disappoint us.

You're serving us truffle risotto. Where's the rocket?

Do I need to remind you...

...that our ice hockey team finished sixth in the championship?

We've moved up seven places in the standings...

...and overtook Dynamo Moscow.

Wait until next year.

You'll see.

Well, you'll get your rocket next year.

No decent rockets in Russia.

But I bought an estate on the Black Sea to cultivate it.

It will be magnificent, but we must be patient.

Keep the leader.

He knows his stuff.

His ticket to Pisa was already booked.

On Ryanair!

Evgueni is very demanding.

But his talents extend beyond cooking and touch on geopolitics.

Even to some of the questions we are discussing.

It would be helpful if you talked to each other.

I didn't know Prigojine very well. Except as a restaurateur.

But Putin had overseen his rise...

...with unwavering kindness.

A 5-minute flight.

Shortly after taking off...

...we began the descent onto Kamenny Island...

...where the Tsar's relatives...

...lived in the most beautiful palaces of the imperial aristocracy.

I'm not an intellectual like you...

...but I've learned a few life lessons.

And not just in prison.

I have no doubt about it.

Do you know how I started?

With my partners...

...we obtained the first casino license in Saint Petersburg.

Or rather, the Tsar gave it to you when he was deputy mayor.

Do you know what a casino is?

A monument to human irrationality.

Why throw your money away...

...when all the odds are against you?

By betting on irrationality, you always win.

Exact.

Pick an average guy.

As long as he's comfortable...

...that he has a secure job, family holidays at the seaside...

...retirement on the horizon...

...he remains quiet.

But if things go wrong...

...If he loses his job, his home...

...if the future becomes uncertain...

...will he play it safe?

No way.

He will choose risk over a hopeless status quo.

Chaos becomes more seductive than order.

Westerners see China, India, and Russia...

...to make giant strides while they are stagnating.

They are willing to take the most unreasonable bets.

Our job is to encourage them.

On the Internet.

This is the battlefield of modern warfare.

I built the tool.

The Tsar wants you to take over.

Internet Research Agency.

I've found the name. It sounds good, doesn't it? What do you think?

Anton !

Our editor-in-chief.

He has a doctorate in international relations...

...and speaks every language imaginable.

Pleased to meet you, Anton.

Explain what you are doing here.

Influence. Information.

The Russian perspective on the West. For Westerners.

They believe that their media and elites lie about everything.

They are customers of alternative versions.

Our message: We tell the truth.

Russia is telling the truth.

Like Russia Today.

We're on social media, not on TV.

A coffee?

We have a relaxation area with sofas, green plants...

And ping-pong tables.

Go ahead, we'll join you.

Evgueni, you're going to have to explain this to me...

...because I'm having trouble understanding.

Is something wrong?

Can we talk?

Of course.

I thought the goal was to influence attitudes in Europe and the US...

...to infiltrate people's minds.

And you're bringing me Anton?

It's the best. -That's precisely the problem.

Westerners are no longer interested in politics.

To kiss them, we have to talk about everything except politics.

We don't need Anton.

From whom, then? -From idiots.

Highly addictive.

Cyber-addicted otaku...

...beauty advice-giving bimbos, conspiracy-theorist YouTubers...

...anything that generates clicks.

At some point, we will have to get our message across.

Who do you think we are?

The Comintern?

I regret to inform you that the USSR no longer exists.

There is no longer a Party line, no longer a message to convey.

Just wire.

Come on, let's go. We're wasting our time here.

What kind of wire are you talking about?

How do you break a piece of wire?

You twist it one way, then the other.

That's what we're going to do, Evgueni.

Explain to me how.

Build your network and see who takes the bait.

They will all have an obsession. The clicks will tell us what it is.

One will be anti-vax, the other pro-life, or pro-choice.

It doesn't matter. We don't want to convert anyone.

All it takes is for each person to have something that drives them crazy.

And someone who makes him furious.

It's infallible.

No preference, no arguments.

The wire.

We twist it one way, then the other way until it breaks.

I understand. The wire.

But everything is traceable on the Internet.

Sooner or later, we'll get caught.

Of course. And that's what we're looking for.

Supporting our allies is predictable. But how will they react?

When will they see that we also support our opponents?

They'll think we're idiots.

They'll go crazy! They'll be lost.

They'll just know that we've gotten inside their heads.

to tamper with their neural circuits.

The Americans created the algorithm.

We'll use it too.

And better than them.

Those who accuse us of plotting against democracy will be our allies.

They will construct the myth of our omnipotence.

This will be the biggest secret because it will be shared by everyone:

...the Russians control the modern world.

They are the masters of it.

You see, that's what's interesting about politics.

Anything that gives the illusion of strength...

...truly increases this strength.

LONDON

Borya. -Vadia.

Are you carrying a message?

Sorry, Borya, no message.

So, in what honor...

...For fun.

Are you here to meet with the British Olympic Association?

Always well-informed.

The Tsar is now only interested in the Sochi Olympics.

The President has tasked me with overseeing the opening ceremony.

Have you planned for the medal for best political assassination?

I don't know, Boris.

The main thing is that Russia comes out on top.

I am not worried.

You will find...

...the worst solution.

As always.

You may not have a message for me, but...

...I have one for him.

That's good, there's no polonium.

This is a letter for the Tsar. It comes from the heart.

Read it if you want.

"I beg you to grant me your Christian forgiveness..."

Are you serious?

I appeal to his faith and offer him my services.

"Based on the experience I have accumulated..."

Listen, frankly, no!

Times have changed.

You're no longer in the running. Sorry for being cruel.

I appeal to his humanity.

Who are you kidding?

"The harshness of exile..."

"Time passing..."

"Death is coming..."

I understand.

But that won't make him blink.

The comfort of ending my days in our motherland.

He can't hear it?

I have to go.

Give him the letter anyway.

I think it can work.

Sincerely.

I wish I could have told him it would work.

How moved the Tsar would be...

...that we would find ourselves side by side for the Olympics, in the VIP section.

I liked him.

Without being a saint, he had retained a childlike joy.

The Tsar having banished his fellow men...

...only the men of strength and their gloomy determination remained in Moscow.

The worst part is that I had contributed to it.

So? Did it go well?

How could that have happened?

He helped you. You could have reached out to him.

Boris sees the Sochi Olympics approaching.

There's still money to be made...

...even though everyone has already lined their pockets.

Including you.

Do you like it? The main costumes from the opening ceremony.

Most importantly...

...did the British Olympic Association like it?

We're wrong.

They've already swallowed up the idea of ​​the Winter Olympics in a seaside resort.

Completely lacking in any sports infrastructure.

Have you seen the others?

No. Not really.

Look. Each island represents a period in our history.

They are in motion, they are floating in the air.

Our entire literary history will unfold.

The domes of Saint Basil are going to fly away.

And then Swan Lake.

Do you like it?

Vadia, this Russia does not exist.

At least, not anymore.

But they were the ones who inspired us, in the past.

It's too late.

You know that.

You will not save your soul.

This ceremony is merely a mask for the dictatorship.

The rest are just empty pretexts.

I see right through you.

That doesn't mean I don't love you.

But I will not be your accomplice.

Can I get you something? -Champagne.

Madam? -Same here.

And the Tsar...

...will free our friend Dmitry.

Are you sure?

You've told me that often.

He will do it two weeks before the Games.

The Western media will have a field day with this.

That's the idea.

You're not going to ask me what I did all day?

Not shopping.

That's not your style.

Something more specialized.

Forget the irony.

I was trying to guess.

I was at the gynecologist's office.

I am pregnant.

You look... -I'm a little shocked, yes.

Actually, I'm devastated.

I have no words.

WAR IN CRIMEA

According to initial findings...

...hanging is believed to be the cause of Boris Berezovsky's death.

Berezovsky was found dead last night at his residence in Ascot.

The forensic pathologist found no evidence of a struggle.

Access was blocked while checks were carried out...

...the absence of chemical, biological or nuclear poison.

It was bound to end like this.

He suffered from exile.

I'm going to miss him.

He gave a detestable image of the opposition.

It was precious to us.

Here is the program for the opening ceremony.

Updated according to your instructions.

What is "Daft Punk"?

Electronic music.

Number one in the world.

Two Frenchmen who never take off their robot helmets.

This table was not in the previous version.

They've won five Grammy Awards. It's time to get with the times.

The police choir will be playing their hit song again.

He turns the ceremony into a farce.

Explain your reasons to Igor.

That's what people want to dance to. It's as simple as that.

That will be ridiculous.

It will be kitschy.

The whole world, three billion viewers...

...are waiting for the greatest show ever seen.

This can only be the apotheosis of kitsch.

Kitsch is the only possible language

if we want to communicate with the masses.

We want to show them our Russia. -Nobody wants to see your Russia.

Besides, you have nothing to show, and everything to hide.

We want to project the image of an open Russia...

...confident, but also capable of smiling.

The world today demands this self-deprecation...

...pas tes balalaïkas, Igor.

Do you understand what I'm saying or is it gibberish?

What do you want...

...Bitch...

...is an acrobat.

Artists for politicians, politics for artists.

Be careful, Vadia.

Sooner or later, you're likely to miss the trapeze...

...and to crash you to the ground.

I declare...

...the 22nd Winter Olympic Games in Sochi...

...open.

I probably should have left that night.

Closing the book on this page, a good ending for me.

Ukrainian separatists took advantage of the Olympic truce...

...to occupy Maidan Square again.

Two days before the end of the Games...

...they overthrew the pro-Russian president Yanukovych...

...who fled that same day.

The resulting chaos gave the Tsar...

...a perfect pretext to invade Ukraine.

Russian snipers killed more than one hundred protesters.

They say you are responsible for it.

Who says so?

The Ukrainians.

Based on your own emails.

You would have Ukrainian blood on your hands.

The day before the closing ceremony...

...following his grand design...

...the Tsar decided to annex Crimea.

Crimea was part of Ukraine.

We weren't going to send troops to invade a sovereign country.

You sent Russian soldiers who were not wearing national insignia.

"Little green men," your fellow journalists used to say.

When Zaldostanov and his Wolves of the Night...

...landed in Crimea, you were pulling the strings.

That's true. I gave them a supporting role.

Supporting roles are important.

As long as they don't get carried away.

Have you seen our flags?

We no longer use those from the Russian Federation.

We have something else in mind.

We are no longer a federation. We are conquerors.

We took Crimea back from the Ukrainians.

Soon the entire Donbas will be Russian.

It's time to take stock.

The point. Really.

I am a man of action.

We are here to support the Russian army.

We will bring you victory.

Who's talking about victory?

Our objective in Ukraine is not conquest.

It's chaos.

The Ukrainians told their stories...

...that their orange revolution would lead them to join Europe.

She will take them back to the Middle Ages.

The promises of Westerners always end the same way.

They abandon you at the first obstacle...

...and you remain alone in your ruined country.

That's the moral of the story.

This war cannot be fought in reality...

...but in the minds of the spectators...

...on the television news.

In Moscow, in Kyiv, in Berlin.

You are the actors in a drama that is beyond your control...

...and which resonates far beyond these borders.

Or you agree to be a pawn in my game, with all the advantages...

...or not. But know that I can unplug you whenever I want.

And that's where things will get more complicated for you...

...your Wolves and your little affairs.

Those who thrive...

...from what I hear.

May I bother you for a moment, Vadim Alexeïevitch?

Please.

How was your trip to Luhansk? Good?

You must have read the reports from your department.

We have news from the Americans.

What's the news?

They reportedly drew up a blacklist...

...of undesirable personalities.

Your name is on it.

You're going to have to forget about New York for a while.

Sanctions for the annexation of Crimea. When do they begin?

Monday.

It's just as well that I no longer like New York.

I also heard something else.

Vas-y.

It will be official tomorrow.

Your name is also on the list of Europeans.

Paris...

...London...

...ends.

I'm told you'll miss Naples.

I won't bother you any longer, Vadim Alexeïevitch.

You have some steps to take.

And quickly.

Lionia, are you aware of this?

Yes, tonight or tomorrow at the latest.

No interview, just a press release.

Are you taking notes?

"I consider these sanctions like an Oscar..."

"...crowned my entire political career.

"That means I served my country honorably." Period.

No, that's all.

THANKS.

Ksenia?

Pack your bags. I'll be there in fifteen minutes.

A few hours later, we landed in Stockholm...

...for our last European weekend.

I guess it was bound to happen.

It was entirely up to you to avoid it.

By resigning?

For example.

Power is an addiction. It is difficult to wean oneself off it.

Before, when you used to say those platitudes...

...I could hear the irony.

Not this time.

There weren't any.

The war in Ukraine is like everything else.

I didn't want it. I even opposed it.

That's what you say.

Indeed.

I'm saying it.

And I also say that once the Tsar has decided...

...I did everything I could to see her succeed.

Out of habit.

Out of pride.

And because I could.

Without any scruples.

It's true.

It's been like this from the beginning.

With the bombs from Moscow and the war in Chechnya.

With the arrest of Dmitry and the fall of Berezovsky.

And now, the Maidan murders.

I didn't want any of this...

...but each time, I devoted my tireless labor to it.

And now you're tired.

Russia devoured my grandfather.

You knew my father, she devoured him too.

I don't know if I will be saved.

Probably not.

In any case, it's too late.

But our child will be saved.

Ksenia?

Ksenia!

I never went to Novo-Ogariovo with a light heart.

The austere, sporty atmosphere depressed me.

Once I returned from Stockholm, I hardly ever went back.

The trust of a prince is not a privilege...

...but a conviction.

I had played my part, I was no longer useful.

At some point, he lost the habit of seeing me.

That's all.

He gets up early, has fresh eggs for breakfast...

...from the farm of Patriarch Kirill.

That's where he reads the confidential notes...

...and transmits its provisions.

Then he swims a kilometer.

Its first visitors are waiting near the pool.

Ministers, advisors, business leaders.

The presidential motorcade does not set off until early afternoon.

The streets were closed half an hour earlier.

From Novo-Ogaryovo to the Kremlin, Putin crosses his frozen capital.

Then her real day begins.

Sometimes ending at dawn.

Only one man does not sleep...

...and all those who matter in Moscow share his vigilance.

Like in Stalin's time.

Who's that?

Hello my dear.

Can I play with Matchka?

Of course. You're not bothering us.

Where is she?

Where has Matchka gone?

Under the table? -No.

Not under the table? -No.

Under the cushion? -No.

Are you sure? -No.

Is it under the piano? -No.

There! -There she is!

All the happiness I have ever known is concentrated in her.

Papa...

...what would Matchka say if she could speak?

I think she would say:

"I'd have more fun with a real rabbit."

Dad!

She would say:

"I love you more than anything, Anja.

"I only want to play with you."

Cats are not my passion.

But how long can I keep her happy?

I had never known fear before Anja.

Ever since I first saw her, I have lived in terror.

My life is in his hands, not the other way around.

My daughter doesn't count the hours or the days.

I have always lived in the future.

She gave me this gift.

THE MAGE OF THE KREMLIN

Based on the novel by GIULIANO DA EMPOLI