Mr Nobody Against Putin Film Review

Mr Nobody Against Putin documents a schoolteacher’s small yet brave acts of resistance as his school changes following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Yet the thing about Mr Nobody Against Putin is that its themes have never been more vital, nor have they been more easily found in other countries.

Somewhat amazingly, as the film shows, this project only came about when Borenstein emailed a random Russian teacher who had already been filming tons of footage from his school. That teacher is the subject, Pavel Talankin, who lives in the small industrial town of Karabash. Pavel is the event coordinator at the uniquely titled Karabash Primary School #1, which he attended as a boy and where his mother still works as a librarian. Pavel is also the school videographer, meaning he shoots and documents all the school’s major events. He likes being with the students and, in his words, “giving them the space to be kids,” turning his office into a welcoming hub for students past and present.

Everything changes with the invasion. A new ‘Patriotic Education Policy’ is enacted and Pavel has to film the kids reciting patriotic songs. Lessons are now scripted and nationalistic in content, with teachers saying Russia needs to “denazify” Ukraine. These also need to be filmed and then uploaded onto a “mysterious government database.”

Through the footage captured and then smuggled out of Russia by Pavel (who is rightfully credited as co-director), Mr Nobody Against Putin shows the gradual militarisation of this school and the ways that blatant propaganda can seep into normal life. Pavel notes that Karabash was once called “the most toxic place on Earth” by UNESCO, because of the copper smelting plant that has caused mass pollution and turned the mountains black. Now the toxicity of authoritarianism has spread across the country and on TV, part of “a national information war” to control public perception of the war in Ukraine.

Some of the teachers deliver these new scripted lessons wholeheartedly. Take history teacher Abdulmanov. When Pavel asks him what historical figures he would like to meet, Abdulmanov mentions Lavrentiy Beria, the brutal leader of Stalin’s secret police. It speaks to his unflinching loyalty to the Russian regime, which leads to a deeply ironic payoff. Conversely, Pavel starts to exhibit more open opposition to the war as time wears on. This will essentially label him as a dissident, especially once Putin passes new (and strict) treason laws. Even something as innocuous as the Russian democracy protest flag in his office is dangerous.

Mr Nobody Against Putin is naturally centred on Pavel’s perspective, given the massive and daring risks he underwent to shoot all the footage. Borenstein furthers this by featuring personable narration from Pavel, direct-to-camera confessionals from him and a structure that is almost like a diary, a progression of his weariness and outspokenness. As a result though, it has a more limited scope compared to other documentaries about the war in Ukraine, not helped by the fact the visual presentation is fairly standard.

Nevertheless, Mr Nobody Against Putin is an informative, often eye-opening documentary that proves to be quietly heartrending at points. Pavel loves Russia and his hometown. He loves the cold weather, the Soviet-era buildings, even the smelting plant. But seeing the rampant nationalism and his former students get drafted to the frontline eats away at him. “I feel like I’m an alien in my own town,” he says after documenting a pro-war rally. And as the start of the film teases, it will force him to leave the place he loves.

Yet it also illuminates how Russia has infringed on the freedom to teach freely and speak out against this form of tyranny. That is why an average person, the titular Mr Nobody, feels he has to carry out small acts of defiance and resistance against this indoctrination. To do the right thing. That is what makes Borenstein and Talankin’s film a very important watch.

Mr Nobody Against Putin, a 2026 Oscar nominee for Best Documentary Feature, is now available to watch on digital and on demand in the U.K. and was released in U.S. theaters on January 21, 2026.