Nostalgia Kinky

A mesmerizing Malcolm McDowell stars in Karen Shakhnazarov intriguing Russion historical/psychological drama Цареубийца (1991). Known as Assassin of the Tsar to English-language audiences, Shakhnazarov’s at times eerie film is an endlessly fascinating puzzle-box with memory, time and a history on endless repeat as its moving pieces. Deaf Crocodile’s new Blu-ray edition gives Assassin of the Tsar a fantastic release with hours of new extras and a beautiful prints of both the English and Russian cuts of the film.

Assassin of the Tsar was Shakhnazarov’s first film after his acclaimed 1988 production Zerograd, which Deaf Crocodile have previously released. He was just shy of 40 when he made Assassin of the Tsar. Such a young age but such a film of experience. He cowrote the film’s complex screenplay with frequent cowriter Aleksandr Borodyanskiy and it is a richly literate work steeped in Soviet history. In fact, on her commentary track for Deaf Crocodile’s release, Samm Dieghan mentions that Assassin of the Tsar stands as one of the final works of Soviet cinema as its release coincided with the fall of the Soviet Union, making it a particularly important film.

Shakhnazarov’s career as a director began at the beginning of the 1980s, when his first feature Kind Men (1980) premiered. His canon was only about half a dozen films deep when Assassin of the Tsar arrived in 1991 but it hadn’t taken Shakhnazarov long to be considered amongst Russia’s most important young filmmakers. Unlike his earlier features, Assassin on the Tsar was designed as a film with more universal appeal, an aspect that caused the film’s production team to think outside the box as far as casting went. And thank outside the box they absolutely did.

It is hard to imagine a time when famed British legend Malcolm McDowell didn’t make himself available to every producer with a script and check in hand but up until the mid-eighties the legendary actor had indeed been quite selective with his roles. This began to change around 1986 when suddenly the award winning star of such classics as A Clockwork Orange and Cat People began appearing in slop like Monte Carlo (1986) and Sunset (1988). Malcolm soon began appearing in as many films per year as he had per decade previously and many were below his extraordinary level of talent. In 1990 alone, McDowell appeared in a whopping half dozen films and they were all distinguished by how bad they were. It was in this atmosphere that a suprise invitation from Russia appeared and best of all, it was with the best script McDowell had been offered in nearly a decade.

Sensing that Assassin of the Tsar was something special McDowell approached the dual role like he had his classic material from the seventies. He was wise to do so, as Assassin of the Tsar represents the best of Mcdowell’s mid-career and stands amongst his finest performances. It is a complex and even sneaky performance that has a lasting impact. Casting McDowell might have seemed a baffling choice at the time but in retrospect it is impossible to imagine Assassin of the Tsar without him.

Joining McDowell are a number of talented Russian performers, with special mention going to brilliant Oleg Yankovskiy, also playing dual roles. Like McDowell, Yankovskiy was an acting giant, most known for his unforgettable work with Tarkovsky. Watching McDowell and Yankovskiy spar back in forth throughout Assassin of the Tsar is a real pleasure and the two actors both supply the deep soul found in the film.

Assassin of the Tsar is, in fact, a film filled with great performances. It is a real actors piece, perhaps even more so than a director’s one. McDowell and Yankovskiy dominate the film but Shakhnazarov’s well-balanced script allows everyone to shine. The film’s great performances are particularly important as the script is honestly a bit over complicated, even convoluted at times, but Assassin of the Tsar thrives as a narrative due to its expertly chosen cast.

Charged with the film’s hypnotically unique visual design is cinematographer Nikolay Nemolyaev, who photographs the time hopping Assassin of the Tsar with great poetic skill. Shakhnazarov has utilized Nemolyaev throughout his career and it is easy to see why. Assassin of the Tsar is a wonderfully photographed film.

Another frequent Shakhnazarov collaborator is editor Lidiya Milioti and their work on Assassin of the Tsar is key due to the complexity of the script. With its emphasis on the fragility of memory and history’s unnerving habit of repeating, the editing of Assassin of the Tsar might very well be the most important aspect of the production, along with the performances and Milioti delivers frequently surprising and always exceptional work.

Despite the obvious interest in attracting a more international audience, Assassin of the Tsar still feels distinctly Russian and any historical knowledge one might bring to the table will be helpful. My knowledge is limited at best so Deaf Crocodile’s supplements placing the film in easier historical context than the script is very welcome. I especially appreciated the booklet that comes with the release featuring Walter Chaw’s very super knowledgeable and helpful look at the film and the history surrounding it.

Chaw breaks down the difficulties Assassin of the Tsar had getting the international distribution hoped for noting it took two years to hit the U.K. and well over a decade before a DVD release here in the states. The delayed UK release was particularly disappointing as McDowell gives an award caliber performance here in a really high-quality turn. I hesitate to say this is one of his last great performances, as there has been fine work since, but by the end of the nineties it was apparent that McDowell was no longer going to truly be utilizing his very special gifts as he once had.

While Assassin of the Tsar as a whole didn’t completely work for me I admired it very much. Deaf Crocodile have put out a splendid special edition of it. Along with the great booklet and fascinating Dieghan commentary track lengthy new interviews with both the director and Mcdowell are on hand making this a comprehensive reissue of the film. Each one of the supplements add both context to the film as well as providing information on the making of it and are all very welcome.

Assassin of the Tsar both looks and sounds great via this Deaf Crocodile release and that goes for both versions. The longer English language cut (featuring Mcdowell’s own very recognizable voice) is the main feature here (and the version featuring Samm’s commentary) while the shorter alternate Russian cut is offered amongst the supplements. The Russian cut features an entirely different edit as well as an alternate music score. And of course Mcdowell’s voice is dubbed.

Assassin of the Tsar was covered fairly significantly in the press, especially when the film made its way to Cannes. The Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad featured a lengthy piece on McDowell’s career since A Clockwork Orange noting that so many of his best post Kubrick works had gone underseen. This particular section dealing with Assassin of the Tsar sums up where McDowell was heading after its failure at Cannes:

“Almost all his films have gone silently with the Dutch cinema visitor was not even able to get acquainted with most of them. The same thing is in danger of happening Assassin or the Tsar, a Russian-English co-production that reached the Cannes Film Festival, but was not awarded. Yet McDowell was tipped as a serious candidate for the award as best actor due to his clever role as a psychiatric patient who imagines having murdered two Russian tsars, including the latter. He was also not given that honor. McDowell won’t be bothered by it. After a quiet period, he will be up to his ears in the work in the coming months.”

And up to his ears in work McDowell was after his brilliant work in Assassin of the Tsar went so sadly underseen. He’d appear in nearly 40 films throughout the rest of the nineties and that prolific number has only increased in the decades since. The vast majority of these films have been forgotten and very few offered the great McDowell anything resembling a quality role. It is hard to comprehend that one of the great counterculture figures of the sixties and seventies would someday star in Home Alone: The Holiday Heist but it is fitting considering the story of English language film has become a tragedy in the past few decades.

Assassin of the Tsar is a difficult but rewarding work and Deaf Crocodile’s new special edition is offers up a beautiful and exhaustive presentation of the film. Offering up beautiful prints of the film and an exclusive batch of valuable extras, it is hard to imagine a more definitive edition of Assassin of the Tsar. Deaf Crocodile’s new release is highly recommended.

-Jeremy Richey, October 2025-

You can order the limited Slipcover edition at Deaf Crocodile:

https://deafcrocodile.com/products/the-assassin-of-the-tsar-blu-ray-limited-slipcover

Standard editions without the slip can be ordered everywhere including MVD:

https://mvdshop.com/products/the-assassin-of-the-tsar-blu-ray