Interview: Director Olivier Assayas On Why There’s “Nothing Russian” In The Wizard Of The Kremlin

With Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, never far from the headlines, the arrival in cinemas of The Wizard Of The Kremlin is timely to say the least. But what sounds like a documentary is actually based on a piece of fiction, Giuliano da Empoli’s novel of the same name, and the film’s award-winning director, Olivier Assayas, says that not only is there nothing Russian about it, it’s not actually about Putin either.

Vadim Baranov’s (Paul Dano) path to power starts in the 1990s. The idealistic young artist finds an unexpected outlet for his talents in reality TV, and he moves on to be the spin doctor to a rising KGB agent, Vladimir Putin (Jude Law), which puts him right at the heart of the Russian government. In shaping the country, he blurs the boundaries between truth, belief and manipulation as Putin tightens his grasp on power. Some years later, after spending his post-government time shrouded in silence and mystery, Baranov emerges to reveal the dark secrets of the regime he helped to create.

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In his exclusive conversation with The People’s Movies, Assayas (Personal Shopper, Clouds Of Sils Maria) describes how he was da Empoli’s first choice to turn the book into a film and why he feels it’s probably more of a portrait of the author than anybody we see on the screen. For the director, The Wizard Of The Kremlin is about the practicalities of politics, how they function and the realities of both taking power and holding on to it. He recalls the many challenges of making the movie without Russian actors, locations or props and why he chose to film in English. “It made it more universal.”

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You can watch the full interview here:

The Wizard Of The Kremlin is in UK cinemas from April 17th.

About the Author

Freda Cooper

Editor

Freda is a Senior Writer at The People's Movies. A lifelong movie fan and a film critic for over ten years, Freda’s natural habitat is the darkened rooms frequented by fellow cineastes. She can also be found asking questions of some of the biggest names in the business – from Cate Blanchett to Daniel Craig or Mike Leigh to Pete Docter – or crafting reviews for a number of sites and publications, including The People’s Movies. And listeners to BBC Local Radio can catch her views on the latest releases. She always – and probably always will – cite The Third Man as her favourite film of all time. Her top ten? That’s a moveable feast …..

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