Navalny doco all the more haunting today
The very first question that Alexei Navalny, the Putin dissident who died last Friday in a remote Arctic Jail, is asked in this Oscar-winning documentary is “If you are killed, what message do you leave behind?”
Navalny
Stan
The very first question that Alexei Navalny, the Putin dissident who died last Friday in a remote Arctic Jail, is asked by director Daniel Roher in this Oscar-winning documentary is “If you are killed, what message do you leave behind?” With a resigned exhale, and a wry laugh, he responds: “Oh, come on, Daniel … let’s make a thriller out of this movie … And then, if I am killed, you can make a boring movie of memory.” This expertly shot film was a nailbiter the first time around, and has taken on a more mournful, elegiac quality given last week’s events — and yet, it weirdly, is often incredibly funny. Filmed in secret during the European winter of 2020-21, it tells a brief history of Navalny’s rise as Russia’s opposition leader and his clashes with the Kremlin, before zeroing in on his poisoning in August 2020. This is essential viewing for anyone aware of Navalny but gives greater insight into who he was as a person — a charming, utterly fearless prankster. He treated everything he did with equal parts gravity and humour. Nowhere is this more evident than when he learns that he was poisoned by Novichok, the same substance that had been used by Russian agents in Salisbury, England, in 2018. “What the f—k?” he says. “That is so stupid.” The most heartwrenching scenes are the B-roll footage of him hanging out with his family such as when he and his stoic wife, Yulia, are debating the superiority of call of Duty or Chess, only to have their American-educated teenage daughter chime in with, “I prefer shopping!” — or when he ropes his staff and family in to film a TikTok video about his attempted assassination to OMC’s How Bizarre.
The Vince Staples Show
Netflix
It’s hard to imagine anyone who isn’t already a fan of Vince Staples gelling with his Netflix show. This isn’t to say that it’s not good; there are some delightful moments. But one can’t help but think that the premise, in which Staples plays a semi-fictionalised version of himself, would fly over the heads of those who aren’t knee-deep in the former Odd Future rapper’s lore. Each of the snappy, five episodes follows the same comic formula. It is set in an uncanny (David Lynch was a major inspiration) version of Staples’ home town in Long Beach, California. He is a celebrity in the rap world, and nobody — whether it be people from his past or the cops who lock him up for a driving offence — can act normally around him. It’s an interesting take on fame, where every interaction is belied by cringe, desperation or some ulterior motive.
John Adams
Binge
For those that have been barracking for Paul Giamatti (for The Holdovers) and Andrew Scott (for All of Us Strangers) this awards season … boy, do I have a show for you. Here they are as scene partners in John Adams, a seven-part HBO miniseries, spanning 50 years, about one of the (lesser-known) founding fathers, who would go on to be the second president of the United States. Giamatti plays the title role, which some have argued was woefully miscast. A fair point, if you’re looking to immerse yourself completely in the Early Republic era. But for those content with watching Giamatti essentially play a version of his cranky, everyman self, in ridiculous poofy wigs — it’s delectable. The heart of this show is Adams’s relationship with his wife, the opinionated and put-upon Abigail (Laura Linney, brilliant.) It’s the perfect, dishy historical drama to tie you over until the next season of Bridgerton.
The World At War
YouTube
If you’re looking for your next big commitment series and want something nutritious, it really doesn’t get better than this. Thames Television’s epic 26-episode documentary, which first aired in 1973, still stands as the most comprehensive and compelling retelling of World War II. For my money, it will always be so because the filmmakers were able to interview such a breadth of people involved in the war while they were still alive — high-level members of the Axis and Allies, Holocaust survivors, Japanese citizens and generals, and so many more. There is even a segment with Jimmy Stewart, the US bomber pilot turned star of It’s A Wonderful Life. The archival footage is extraordinary and so disturbingly gory that it’s hard to believe it was allowed to air 50 years ago. Laurence Olivier — who famously hated the gig but no less did a perfect, intense job — provides the narration atop Carl Davis’s haunting score. This has been a staple on history channels for decades, but you can stream it in its entirety on YouTube, linked below.
