‘Antidote’ Review: A Tense, Entertaining Documentary About the Perils of Investigative Journalism
variety.comMurtada Elfadl From its very first moments, “Antidote” unspools like a propulsive thriller. An off-camera voice asks Bulgarian investigative journalist Christo Grozev, “Did you ever think you’d be investigating an assassination plot against yourself?” From that startling introduction, director James Jones’ galvanizing documentary moves at a fast speed to tell its high-stakes story about Vladimir Putin’s Russia, contemporary investigative journalism and the people who put their lives in jeopardy for what they believe in.
In addition to Grozev, the film follows two other activists. The first is an unnamed scientist who participated in Russia’s poison-making program.
After finding out that the poison he developed was being used to terminate Putin’s enemies, he turned whistleblower. The film chronicles how Grozev, who published his testimonies, attempts to help him and his family flee Russia into the European Union.
His facial features have been digitally altered by the filmmakers to maintain his anonymity. The scenes that feature his escape play as if they are from a fictional action movie, except that here, the stakes are life and death.
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