Veteran French filmmaker Olivier Assayas returned to the Venice Film Festival competition today with The Wizard of the Kremlin, a topical drama revolving around a scheming Russian spin doctor who smooths Vladimir Putin’s ascent to power in the 1990s. It just world premiered on the Lido, receiving an 11-minute, 42-second ovation.
Writer/director Assayas beamed at the enthusiastic response from the audience as he and cast members Jude Law, Paul Dano, Alicia Vikander and more soaked in the applause.
Dano stars in the titular role of Vadim Baranov, a former avant-garde artist and reality TV show producer, who becomes the unofficial advisor to ex-KGB agent Putin as he rises up the political chain. Law plays Putin with Vikander as Baranov’s beautiful wife Ksenia, who oscillates between a desire for bohemian freedom and wealth and influence. Will Keen, Jeffrey Wright and Tom Sturridge round out the cast.
The feature is adapted by Assayas and award-winning writer Emmanuel Carrère from Giuliano da Empoli’s eponymous 2022 novel inspired by the career of Putin’s real long-term adviser and spin doctor Vladislav Surkov.
During a press conference earlier today, Law was asked whether he felt any fear in playing the Russian leader. He responded, “I hope not naively, but I know I didn’t, I didn’t fear repercussions. I felt confident in the hands of Olivier and the script, and that this was a story that was going to be told intelligently and with nuance and consideration. We weren’t looking for controversy for controversy’s sake. And more importantly, I think it was key to for me to remember that it’s a character within a much broader story. We weren’t trying to define anything about anyone.”
Irma Vep, Clouds of Sils Maria and Personal Shopper filmmaker Assayas has previously been in competition on the Lido with 2018’s Double Vies (Non-Fiction) and 2019’s Wasp Network.
The Wizard of the Kremlin is produced by Oliver Delbosc (Curiosa Films) and Sidonie Dumas (Gaumont) in coproduction with France 2 Cinéma with the participation of France Télévisions and Disney+. Gaumont is handling French distribution and international sales.
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