Pussy vs Putin

Singing, protesting and getting arrested, it's a bizarre odyssey. Through the band's struggle and the reaction of Russian society towards them, this doc skillfully captures the essence of modern Russia. "Blashphemers get behind me Satan," shouts an Orthodox protestor as he's lead away by police. Side by side religious protestors and the Pussy Riot girls stage their own protests as the police bear down on them. Suddenly, in a bizarre twist, protestors from both sides who've been arrested are thrown into the same police van. "You make your own performance and we do ours," one of the Orthodox boys says, laughing. But quickly the conversation becomes heated. "Hacked icons on Red Square, do you call this art?" They say. "Yes I think art must be free," the girls respond. "You can f**k each other, but don't touch the Church! I'd cut my own throat before I let this desecration happen." "Do you have a name for your movement; for your group?" The guitarist asks. "Pussy riot." The girls, all wearing their trademark colourful balaclavas, say one after the other, almost chanting it. "Riot - it's kinda revolt on the street... pussy - a tender name for a girl or kitty." In the intimate space of their changing room, they're setting out exactly what they're about. "Pussy cat made a mess in the house." And in the house that is Russia they're definitely making a mess. At an impromptu concert in the subway they sing, "Warm up the muscles on your hands and legs. A Cop is licking between the legs." The crowd love it, they clap and whistle, "Wow, f**k it." But when the come down, they're arrested and violently dragged off. As the crowds watch on silently, with no-one saying a word, the scene has the eerie sensation of a totalitarian nightmare. The girls' journey is full of striking scenes like this, as the girl's continually draw out a response from Putin's regime and divide a country where conservatism and anarchy both exist as powerful, potent forces. A stark image of today's Russia.