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Siberian Hustle

Alex Gibney's new documentary "Citizen K," is centered around the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. More specifically, it's about how Russia went about switching from communism to capitalism. Their version was not similar to what Americans have always considered capitalism, or at least what Americans used to consider capitalism.

In theory, at least, capitalism should have an infrastructure that includes a free press, a judicial system, and a structure of investment and finance. Russia had none of these and still doesn't, over 20 years later.

In Russia, the government handed out vouchers to be used to buy goods, including food. The general population, having never really dealt with money previously, was ill-prepared for this. Some in the upper class, and others who desired to vault into the upper class, seized upon what they saw as a great new opportunity by buying up the vouchers for far less than they were worth, from the less informed.

One of those who stepped in to cash in was Mikhail Khodorkovsky (Citizen K). He made a fortune while Yeltsin was in power, but everything changed when Putin rose to power, because Putin regarded Khodorkovsky as a threat to his power.

Putin wanted control returned to the State; in other words, to the criminals he approved of, so he could get his cut. Because Khodorkovsky was perceived as a threat by Putin, he was sent to a Siberian prison for 10 years, until pressure from other leaders led to his release. Khodorkovsky re-located to London and from there he has been trying to help get Putin out of office. Good luck with that.

While it's a fairly enjoyable watch, "Citizen K" doesn't pop. Everyone is pretty much a bad guy, even if we are being told that Khodorkovsky has seen the light and that he is now a born-again reformer. Maybe, but I was unable to totally buy into his epiphany.

The somber part is that the difference between how Russia is run and how America is run isn't really all that different, especially now. One can't help but come to the conclusion that America is getting closer to the traditional Russian model, rather than the reverse. Nothing uplifting here.