Get the latest gossip
‘Patriots’ Review: Peter Morgan’s Disappointing Power Play About Putin’s Rise in Post-Soviet Russia is a ‘Nyet’
In this story of Russian politics and Putin's rise, Morgan is unable to speak with the native authenticity he brought to his other, far richer works.
The premise for this West End-to-Broadway transfer is intriguing at first, especially to audiences unfamiliar with the major forces at play in Russian politics of the ’90s: the breakup of the Soviet Union, the privatization of state property and the rise of oligarchs who rule as gangster capitalists. By contrast, Morgan’s Putin ( Will Keen, compelling in his rigid minimalism and clenched voice) is first seen as a deferential deputy mayor of St. Petersburg, practically disappearing into his drab, ill-fitting suit but still steadfast in declining the bribes offered by Berezovsky. There’s an assassination attempt, the Kursk submarine disaster, a complicated London trial, a hit-list poisoning, dashes of antisemitism, a quick cameo by Pussy Riot protesters, Putin’s consolidation of power, and an oligarch’s questionable death.
Or read this on Variety
