Khodorkovsky

German documentarian Cyril Tuschi brings the intrigue of a John Le Carré thriller to this film about fallen Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who became one of the new breed of mega-capitalists after the collapse of the U.S.S.R. Being head of the gasoline company Yukos turned Khodorkovsky into the world's richest man under 40, but according to his bodyguard (an ex-KGB general), success also brought paid protection deals with Russian mobs and compromises with Vladimir Putin's Kremlin. Khodorkovsky may have hastened his way down a slippery slope by meddling in opposition-party political affairs and endorsements; in any case he was arrested in 2003 and sent to Siberia for alleged tax evasion, while his partners were scattered in exile, and his business was co-opted by Moscow. Human rights advocates and George W. Bush expressed concern that a proponent of democratic reform was being persecuted, but within Russia today Tuschi finds a young generation who are largely apathetic about Khodorkovsky's plight (there's even a suggestion that Khodorkovsky will use imprisonment and an aura of martyrdom to someday boost his own political ambitions). Tuschi combines vintage and contemporary footage, interviews with Khodorkovsky and members of his family, and striking chiaroscuro animation (used to speculate on his subject's inner life) to create a memorable journey into the world of post-Soviet intrigue. Highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (C. Cassady)