The 11 Best Movies of the 2025 Venice Film Festival
In simpler terms, Olivier Assayas’s film portrays the story of Russia in the 21st century, focusing on a character inspired by real-life figures, such as a playwright, media mogul, and political strategist (played chilling by Paul Dano). This character helps put Vladimir Putin (delivered well by Jude Law) into power and works tirelessly to maintain his rule. He manipulates news, invents stories, stirs up discord, and teams up with the most radical segments of society to keep his chosen leader in office. As the movie races through significant events from the post-Soviet period, we witness a nation that was brimming with freedom and potential shut down and descend into brutal dictatorship, all under the guise of safety. Evidently, something similar could never happen anywhere else.