The Assassination of Trotsky (1972) – Interesting

Director: Joseph Losey

Genre: Spy Drama (True Story)

Time: 1 Hour 38 minutes

Platform: You Tube

Cast: Richard Burton. Alain Delon. Romy Schneider.

French Superstar Alain Delon, personified French cool in his best period during the 1960s and 1970s, where he played a wide range of interesting roles that ranged the entire spectrum from white to grey and black. He was a Mafia hitman in the iconic Le Samourai (1967), a Policeman hunting a vicious criminal over a three year period in Flic Story (1975) and the CIA sponsored assassin Scorpio (1974). However one of his films that does not get discussed too much is The Assassination of Leon Trotsky, which is based on the real-life story of Trotsky’s assassination in 1940, in Mexico by a NKVD (later KGB) assassin Ramon Mercador. (For more about Mercador, check this wiki link)

Trotsky was the architect of the Red Army, which was born in the Russian Revolution. After Lenin’s death, Stalin sidelined Trotsky with various accusations. Stalin’s power was weak, and he knew that he couldn’t move against Trotsky without weakening his own reputation, as Trotsky’s revolutionary credentials were impeccable. So he exiled Trotsky and hounded him. Finally, Trotsky settled in Mexico where he was assassinated in 1940 . Trotsky’s assassination sent out the message to anyone contemplating defecting or leaving the Soviet Union – you can leave only one way ; feet first!  Even now, the reputation for assassinating Russian dissidents persists – simply Google (SVR intelligence officer) Alexander Litvinenko, (journalist) Anna Politkovskaya, and most recently (politician) Alexey Navalny. The assassination methods were Polonium Poisoning (Litvinenko), gangland style shooting (Politkovskaya) and just another death in jail (Navalny). Mercador was much more “old fashioned” – yet innovative. He used an ICE AXE which is now on display at the Washington Spy Museum.

If we keep this background, the film makes sense and an interesting watch, as Stalin wanted to get rid of any remaining power centre around Trotsky.

          The film starts with Trotsky (Richard Burton) who is in exile in Mexico going about his daily life. During a nighttime assault, a group of intruders tries to kill him but do not succeed. The police conduct an enquiry, but they don’t reach any conclusions. Trotsky jokes with the Police Colonel that this attempt was by Joseph Stalin and then laughs it off. Frank Jacson (the identity supplied by the NKVD to Ramon Mercador), a young man, infiltrates Trotsky’s circle. Jacson tries his best to come to Trotsky’s sanctum to gain access to him, to become friendly with him and then finally kill him. In addition to private bodyguards, Trotsky relies on his wife Natasha for protection and consultation in every aspect of his life. Jacson is also in a relationship with Gita Samuels (Romy Schneider) and she wonders at the gradual change in his behavior.

On the plus side, the film shows how Russian Intelligence went out of the way to “get” “traitors” . Then as now, they have been incredibly patient in delivering a message to dissidents or anyone who disagrees with the system. The methods have ranged from the absolutely brutal to the highly sophisticated such as polonium poisoning, Cyanide guns that simulate a heart attack, umbrellas with a poison dart and so on.

On the minus side. The script does not help. It is difficult to show a patient infiltration on screen and that can lead to boredom for the audience . Additionally, “Jacson” relation with “Gita Samuels” is surely fictitious as Mercador married in prison after 1940 and not before the assassination.

Richard Burton is an actor who can never do any wrong but in the mid 1970s, his track record of hits did suffer; yet he delivers an excellent performance as the ageing idiosyncratic Trotsky. Delon has his usual swag and looks creepy with the dark glasses on.

Overall it is a watchable film that has shades of brilliance in some scenes.  The film is free on You Tube 

Real History/ Historical background  – 3 out of 5

Script – 3 out of 5

Story – 4 out of 5

Direction – 4 out of 5

Photography – 4 out of 5

Total – 3.6 out of 5