Netflix: The ideological debate spoiled by Trotsky, an imposing Russian miniseries

Trotsky (Russia / 2017).
addressAlexander Kott and Konstantin Statsky.
The script: Ruslan Galeev, Oleg Malovichko and Pavel Tetersky.
PhotographyNikoali Bogachyov, Ulubek Khamraev and Sergei Trofimov.
Music: Ryan Otter.
Artistic direction: Pia Corti.
castMembers: Konstantin Khabensky, Alexandra Mareeva, Olga Sutoulova, Max Matveev, Evgeny Stychkin, Sergei Garmash, Orkhan Abulov.
Available in:

Netflix

.
Our opinion: regular

This ambitious eight-part miniseries dedicated to the life of Leon Davidovich Bronstein, known to all as Leon Trotsky (1879-1940), was one of Mipcom 2017's greatest attractions, the annual maximum television show. . In October of this year, the Cannes Congress Center received a huge embbady from Russia, for the first time in a gigantic launch of programming for the global television market.

The entire package arrived on the Costa Azul and was introduced to the world's most powerful audiovisual leaders, buyers and sellers of formats under the pompous title of the Russian content revolution, much like "the Russian revolution of content ". There was reason for the Trotsky series to be the flagship product of the proposal, which coincided with
the centenary of the so-called revolution of October, which had Trotsky as one of his great theoreticians and protagonists.

His influence as a figure of the political ideas of the left is maintained with such force until the political heirs of his thought, here and elsewhere in the world, add their signature to a statement. of repudiation of the series, which observes to Trotsky with a critical eye and an inquiring mind. The document signed by Argentine politicians Nicolás del Caño, Myriam Bregman and Néstor Pitrola warns of the historical "lies" of the series and seeks to "reconstruct the reality of events", in particular the "end of the falsification" of the final scene ". of the murder of the Russian revolutionary ".

Beyond not understanding the breadth of freedom of expression and the meaning of any dramatization inspired by real events, this release signed by politicians and thinkers who recognize Trotsky as an inspired figure by ideology or devote themselves to the study of his thought has a common denominator with the same series as the one visible on Netflix. They both sin by exaggeration and commit sin by taking all that is said in their eight episodes too seriously. As if all the architects and critics involved in this project had felt the need to bring the ink and tell about a fictional story a whole set of profound and profound problems related to the political and social situation of the country. today's world.

In truth, the series makes an extraordinary contribution to this misleading idea. The narrative conception of
Trotsky he is constantly supported by a succession of solemn declarations on the history and thought of Russia. What is amusing is that all this is implemented in the context of a gigantic Russian production that meets the most basic Western rules of this type of program: the staging, the framing, the performances and the technical elements advice with a spirit much closer to the pursuit of entertainment than political discussion or alleged indoctrination.

The fact that a powerful Russian state television network, Channel One, appears behind this production could give a reason to the signatories of the repudiation application. From this point of view, the important questions posed to Trotsky's figure in the series respond to a careful and deliberate strategic plan of Vladimir Putin's government. The internationalism of Trotsky and his revolutionary zeal without measuring the costs (especially human) would oppose the preaching of the Putin government in favor of the family, certain fundamental moral values ​​and the justification of Russian historical nationalism .

But this debate hides what really appears in the miniseries: a succession of cumbersome and overloaded ideological and philosophical statements that flood even the most mundane scenes, without any need. This almost desperate desire to leave open all the time manifestos and utterances eloquently removes the natural to a proposal that had an enviable amount of technical, human and economic resources.

A colorful production, a staging that focuses on realism and attention to detail in terms of historical reconstruction, the contribution of very competent actors and several striking scenes of great eroticism become accessories that lose their relevance to so much ranting eagerness. . The place for this kind of debate is not a TV drama. The only thing left
Trotsky This is the question of the future of Russian audiovisual production: there are tools and talent to discover for this country to become a leading player in the years to come.