On Putin’s Blacklist

Canadian filmmaker Boris Ivanov’s documentary considers some of the negative impacts of Vladimir Putin’s presidency, specifically the limits placed on the adoption of Russian orphans and the administration’s hostility towards the LGBT community. In the post-Soviet years, a flood of Western parents seeking Russian orphans created an exodus of unwanted children out of Russia. The film interviews several Russians who grew up to enjoy well-adjusted lives in the U.S., although it does not cover concerns raised by some Western parents regarding the mental health of the Russian orphans, nor does it consider the 2010 controversy when a Tennessee mother sought to annul her adoption of a 7-year-old Russian boy by sending him alone on a one-way flight to Russia. Putin brought his homophobic policies into play by refusing to allow Russian orphans to be adopted by countries that recognized same-sex marriage. The film also gives some attention to Pussy Riot, the feminist punk rockers who mix anti-Putin politics into their act. Unfortunately, the overlap between the adoptions and the LGBT controversies is mostly limited, which creates a ping-pong effect as the focus swings from one subject to the other. On Putin’s Blacklist also offers a belated afterthought regarding Putin’s interest in the 2016 U.S. election, a subject that will likely be addressed in much more depth in future documentaries. Optional. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)