NAVALNY

As the second half of the documentary deals with the fallout of the poisoning, it's straight up incredible to witness the entire situation unfold. Over months of research and data cutting, such as that from flight manifests, Navalny and his team are able to piece together the conspiracy leading to his poisoning. This all culminates in a sequence one really has to see to believe; huddled with his team and filming the entire event on their iPhones, Navalny prank calls a number of scientists who may have had a part in his poisoning. All it takes is one loose link in the chain for a shell-shocked Navalny and his team to receive an incredibly detailed recount of the failed poisoning. It's harrowing footage, made even more so by Navalny's team's post-call nervous laughs about the inevitably sealed fate of the singing scientist. It's also the kind of footage you would expect from an overly-contrived, over-written thriller.

Of course, the hyper-stylised nature of many moments in the documentary lead to an at times meticulousness that matches Navalny's production on his YouTube videos and calls into question the authenticity of the people being captured. As with any documentary filmmaking - especially one this up close and personal - maintaining some objectivity over your subject can often become close to impossible. Thankfully, there are measures that Roher puts in place to prevent this from happening – including but not limited to pressing Navalny on the more questionable allegiances he kept earlier in his political career - but they don't do much to paint Navalny as anything less than a freedom fighter with a few minor chinks in his armour.

Ultimately, Daniel Roher has hit the jackpot with 'Navalny', a documentary so meticulously well-timed to capture an integral moment in political history it feels like a once-in-a-lifetime event. It also manages to capture both the horror and hopefulness that come with imposing meaningful action against a hostile political landscape. Even though its subject may spend the rest of his life in prison, this documentary ensures his story and his fight will never be easily forgotten.