From Russia with Lev’s key illustration. Courtesy of MSNBC Films.
From Russia with Lev is the latest must-see pre-election documentary. It’s another documentary Donald Trump doesn’t want you to see.
It will always pique my interest when I hear that Billy Corben is directing a new documentary. In collaboration with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow and her production company Surprise Inside, the team at rakontur continues to do what they do best. In this case, it’s about uncovering the full story of Lev Parnas and his role in the Trump-Ukraine scandal. While Parnas served as a witness in the 2019 House impeachment trial, the Senate did not require witnesses in the conviction trial. A conviction would mean Trump would not run for office this year. Unfortunately, they lacked the courage. Because of this, America is once again facing threats to democracy from the former president.
When he first met Trump, Parnas said:
“The moment that really touched me was when I asked him, ‘Why are you doing this?’ And he looked out to sea and then stared at us and said, ‘You know what? I don’t have to do this. I’m doing this for the common people, for the ordinary people. I’m trying to stop them from destroying our country.’ And in that moment, something hit me. I was fascinated, cultured, mesmerized. I was Trumpanized.”
The cult of Trumpism is something that keeps cropping up. In fact, there is another documentary on the subject, #Untruth: The Psychology of TrumpismBoth films are a must-see before the November elections. Unfortunately, I fear that the people who NEED want to see these documentaries won’t see them because they’re not airing on Fox News.
Before Parnas met Donald Trump during his 2016 campaign, he had only turned his life around shortly after the Great Recession. His relationships with Trump and American Mayor Rudy Guiliani led him to travel the world and meet many Republican bigwigs. Unfortunately for Parnas, this also led to an arrest and a prison sentence. Going to prison, Parnas said, might have been the best thing that could have happened to him. He was able to wake up having been Trumpanized the night he met Trump.
Parnas pulls back the curtain by explaining how the Trump administration came up with its allegations against Joe Biden when he was running for president. Although the film is only about an hour and a half long, it contains more than 30 hours of interviews with Parnas and his network. I’m curious how long the original cut was before the filmmakers trimmed it down for the MSNBC broadcast. There are photos, videos, documents, and yes, even secret recordings that have not been shown publicly. Parnas took many photos that would later become evidence in Trump’s impeachment. The photos and footage here are particularly incriminating not only for Trump, but also for Fox News.
After Parnas mentions that he wants to ask Hunter Biden for forgiveness, it’s only fitting that the two meet in person. It’s a very moving conversation in which Parnas opens up and even cries about his involvement.
This quote from Lev Parnas at the end of the film makes the matter clear:
“I feel stupid. I feel disgusted. I feel – I’m ashamed. I really thought we were helping America, but now I look back, we destroyed America. We’re so divided. People are at each other’s throats. And the sad thing about it? That’s exactly what Vladimir Putin wanted, and we handed it to him on a silver platter. How ironic is that? The Republicans under Reagan were against the Soviet Union, against Russia, against the Cold War, against democracy. And now we have Republicans literally screaming Russian propaganda.”
If you can take something away from watching From Russia with LevTrump only cares about himself. As soon as he no longer cares about someone, he will deny ever having known them. His behavior – time and time again – is completely unpresidential. After Parnas’ arrest, Trump repeatedly denied knowing Parnas. The joke was at Trump’s expense, because there is always a photo or recording. In addition to the documentary, Parnas also tells his story in his 2024 book ” Shadow diplomacy.
From Russia with Lev must be seen by as many eyes as possible.
DIRECTOR: Billy Corben
WITH: Lev Parnas, Svetlana Parnas, Michael Sallah, Tony Andre, Joseph Bondy, Hunter Biden
MSNBC airs “From Russia with Lev” on September 20 at 9 p.m. ET. Rating: 4/5
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