Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer (2013)

Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer: Directed by Mike Lerner, Maxim Pozdorovkin. With Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Mariya Alyokhina, Yekaterina Samutsevich, Andrey Tolokonnikov. Follows the court case of three members of the Russian feminist punk protest group Pussy Riot after their performance in a Russian Orthodox cathedral.

“Some North American reviewers have dismissed PUSSY RIOT – A PUNK PRAYER for its lack of objectivity in its presentation of the three Russian girls, who dared to perform punk songs at the altar in Moscowu0026#39;s Orthodox Cathedral. I think that u0026#39;subjectivityu0026#39; is precisely the filmu0026#39;s point; the girls were tried and sentenced according to the subjective will of the Russian government. In a truly democratic society, different subjectivities are allowed, but not in Putinu0026#39;s Russia, where the girls are expected to apologize for their u0026#39;crimesu0026#39; before being sentenced. Mike Lerner and Martin Pozdorovkinu0026#39;s film unfolds over the course of six months, taking in the performances of Pussy Riot, the trial and its aftermath. While you might not agree with what the girls actually did, they do have a point; they were simply trying to express their views, not incite religious hatred (as the authorities accused them of doing). In the current context, where individual struggles for freedom are being experienced in other territories, as well as Russia (Egypt, the Turkish Republic), PUSSY RIOT – A PUNK PRAYER offers a salutary lesson: the girls are not alone in trying to assert their democratic rights to free speech. Hopefully this film will be given a wide distribution, to make viewers worldwide aware of its important message.”