The documentary Aleksei Navalny knew we would watch it after his death

About two-thirds of the way through, Navalny is relaxing between interviews with Roher when a woman asks if he is annoyed by the questions about his past. No, Navalny says in Russian: Roher can ask whatever he wants. She says it's fine, but he seems annoyed.

Navalny stops and explains, “It's just that when I get punched, I realize he's filming it all for the movie he's going to release.”

He wasn't quite right. A few months after its premiere, “Navalny” made its streaming debut in the US, where it continued to turn heads. Meanwhile, Navalny, alive but in prison, remained connected to the world. He had built a strong social media presence and he and his team (who remain in exile) continued posting during his captivity. And then, in March 2023, “Navalny” won best documentary at the Oscars, further proof that the world was watching.

But if “Navalny” wasn't intended as a postmortem, it's chilling to watch it after reports of his death. He knows what could happen, but doesn't seem afraid, but determined. On the day of his return to Moscow, he seems nervous and determined, but with his fellow passengers he jokes about the weather, accepts their well wishes and watches “Rick and Morty” descend. This, as you realise, is a resolutely unflappable man.

At the end of the film, Roher again asks Navalny what message he would leave for the Russian people if he were imprisoned or even killed. Navalny responds in English: “My message for the situation in which I am killed is very simple: do not give up.” Roher realizes there is more to it and asks him to repeat his answer in Russian.

“Listen, I have something very clear to tell you,” Navalny says quickly and fluently in Russian, according to the subtitles. He looks straight into the camera and gains steam along the way. 'You can't give up. If they decide to kill me, that means we are incredibly strong. We must use this power not to give up, to remember that we are a huge power oppressed by these bad guys. We don't realize how strong we actually are.”