The film Limonov: The Ballad by Kirill Serebrennikov is an extremely ambitious attempt to bring to the screen the life of one of the most provocative and controversial figures in Russian history — Eduard Limonov. The film promises the viewer a deep dive into the mind of the punk poet and radical politician — yet it seems that the director, in his desire to achieve this, becomes, first, a captive of his own personal drive for shock, and second, a prisoner of his sympathies toward loud, clattering, and flamboyant characters — of which Edichka is a prime example.

Ben Whishaw, in the leading role, boldly embodies all sides of Limonov’s personality: he is a romantic outcast, an unrecognized poet, a ladies' man — and, of course, a bit of a nationalist. However, Whishaw’s performance ultimately does a disservice to the film: his excessively flamboyant theatricality seems to push the viewer away from the uncomfortable truths. It is frustrating that some episodes from Limonov’s life — for instance, his openly militarist views — appear to be romanticized by the director, while others seem to be deliberately omitted from the already fragmented cinematic narrative.

And it would seem — now, precisely now — that there is an urgent need for a story about the brutal breaking of human nature under the pressure of ideas that have long since sickened the world. Yet, for some unknown reason, what unfolds before the viewer is almost a fairy-tale bogatyr-gangster, swaggering with openly nationalist ideas and showing "Kuzka’s mother" to frail and tongue-tied hosts on French radio.
However, it is not so easy to reproach Serebrennikov for harbouring a certain fondness for the late-updated Limonov. After all, the film concludes with Edichka’s release from prison — and the rest of his story the viewer — most likely a foreigner unfamiliar with the Russian political landscape — will have to piece together by scrolling through Wikipedia.

But then again — the director might argue — a ballad is a ballad, that is, a form of lyrical-epic poetry built around a dramatic plot and an extraordinary event. The event is there; the drama seems to be there as well... and beyond that — what does it really matter?