Film Review: Olivier Assayas's 'The Magician in the Kremlin' Criticized as Overstuffed Political Thriller

In 'The Magician in the Kremlin,' directed by Olivier Assayas, Jude Law takes on the role of Vladimir Putin, while Paul Dano portrays a fictionalized version of Vladislav Surkov, named Vadim Baranov. This film, inspired by Giuliano da Empoli's novel, spans from Surkov's early career to the 2014 annexation of Crimea. Critic Volker Sievert suggests that the film, which has a runtime of 145 minutes, suffers from excessive exposition and would have been more effective as an eight-part miniseries. The heavy reliance on dialogue and voice-over results in underdeveloped characters. Although Law delivers memorable moments as Putin, Dano's performance lacks variety, and Alicia Vikander's character, Ksenia, remains insufficiently explored.