In this adaptation of Giuliano da Empoli’s award-winning book, director Olivier Assayas traces the rise and fall of the fictional Vadim Baranov (Paul Dano), a former theater and TV director who becomes Vladimir Putin’s (Jude Law) right-hand man. Amidst the post-Soviet chaos and the turbulent start of the Russian federation, Baranov blurs truth and lies, helping the modern tsar shape Russia into the 21st century’s emblematic autocracy. The film also stars Tom Sturridge, Alicia Vikander, and Jeffrey Wright.