Assassin of the Tsar (1991)
"Tsareubiytsa" (original title)

A patient in a modern day mental institution believes that he is the man who assassinated Tsar Alexander in 1881 and Tsar Nicolas II in 1918. He and his doctor soon slip out of reality and ... See full summary »

Director:

Karen Shakhnazarov

Writers:

Aleksandr Borodyanskiy, Karen Shakhnazarov

Stars:

Malcolm McDowell, Oleg Yankovskiy, Armen Dzhigarkhanyan

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Malcolm McDowell	...	Timofeyev / Yurovsky
Oleg Yankovskiy	...	Dr. Smirnov / Tsar Nicholas II
Armen Dzhigarkhanyan	...	Aleksandr Yegorovich
Yuriy Sherstnyov	...	Kozlov
Anzhela Ptashuk	...	Marina
Viktor Seferov	...	Vojkov (as V. Seferov)
Olga Antonova	...	Tsarina Aleksandra (as O. Antonova)
Dariya Majorova	...	Princess Olga (as D. Majorova)
Evgeniya Kryukova	...	Princess Tatyana (as Ye. Kryukova)
Alyona Teremizova	...	Princess Mariya (as A. Teremizova)
Olga Borisova	...	Princess Anastasiya (as O. Borisova)
Anastasiya Nemolyayeva	...	Nurse (as A. Nemolyayeva)
Aleksei Logunov	...	Prince Aleksei (as A. Logunov)
Vyacheslav Vdovin	...	Dr. Botkin (as V. Vdovin)
Vyacheslav Mukhov	...	Medvedev (as V. Mukhov)

Storyline

A patient in a modern day mental institution believes that he is the man who assassinated Tsar Alexander in 1881 and Tsar Nicolas II in 1918. He and his doctor soon slip out of reality and are forced to relive the events of 1918 in order to break the spell.

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Plot Keywords:

tsar | visions | 1990s | dual lives | channeling | 

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Genres:

Drama | History

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Details

Country:

Soviet Union UK

Language:

Russian English

Release Date:

1 October 1993 (UK)

Also Known As:

Assassin of the Tsar

Company Credits

Production Co:

Courier Studios, Mosfilm, Spectator Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Timofeyev: Enduring the fact that your relatives in Europe keep attacking Soviet Russia... The Ural Executive Committee have decided to shoot you.
Dr. Smirnov: What?
[shooting begins]

User Reviews

ASSASSIN OF THE TSAR (Karen Shakhnazarov, 1991) **1/2

This is an intriguing and generally engrossing parable which eventually becomes confusing and with the point of it all, ultimately, remaining obscure; it also makes some interesting (though not exactly novel) comments on class, notoriety and about the way history tends to repeat itself. Malcolm McDowell turns in a good performance as a mental patient who believes himself to be the assassin of two Russian Czars; so far so good - but, then, his psychiatrist (for no very good reason) is a dead-ringer for Nicholas II! I haven't watched that many recent Russian films but this one seems to be fairly indicative of their content, style and overall quality - even if made by a director whose work I wasn't familiar with.