''Meeting Gorbachev'' is a 2018

biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

directed by

Werner Herzog Werner Herzog (; born 5 September 1942) is a German film director, screenwriter, author, actor, and opera director, regarded as a pioneer of New German Cinema. His films often feature ambitious protagonists with impossible dreams, people with un ...

and

André Singer André Singer may refer to: * André Singer (producer) (born 1945), British documentary film-maker and anthropologist * André Vítor Singer André Vítor Singer (born 1958) is a political sciences professor at the University of São Paulo and ...

about the life of

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet politician who served as the 8th and final leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

, the eighth and last leader of the Soviet Union. The film features three interviews between Herzog and Gorbachev, conducted over the span of six months, and had its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival on September 1, 2018. The film ends with Gorbachev reciting the poem "I Go Out On The Road Alone" by Mikhail Lermontov.

Release

The film premiered at the Telluride Film Festival on September 1, 2018. It was then screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 2018, where it received wider press coverage.

Critical reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of based on reviews, and an average rating of . The site's critical consensus reads, "''Meeting Gorbachev'' plays to filmmaker Werner Herzog's endlessly inquisitive strengths -- and reveals the fascinating story of a pivotal political figure." David Ehrlich of '' IndieWire'' "ultimately because of Gorbachev's seeming unwillingness to fit the director's usual mold that Meeting Gorbachev is able to become such a different and engaging bio-doc." While overall positive, Jessica Kiang of '' Variety'' criticized the film, saying that the film, "though consistently engaging, is less a fireworks display than a fireside chat, and so feels curiously like an opportunity missed."

References

External links

* * * {{Werner Herzog American documentary films British documentary films German documentary films Cultural depictions of Mikhail Gorbachev Films directed by Werner Herzog 1091 Media films 2010s American films 2010s British films 2010s German films