---
title: "Limonov: The Ballad"
year: 2024
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/limonov-the-ballad"
fi1m_id: "limonov-the-ballad"
imdb_id: "tt2963262"
tmdb_id: 495278
wikidata_id: "Q112054671"
fi1m_score: 58
critics_score: 55
critics_reviews: 6
published: "2026-10-05T16:51:48.216624+00:00"
updated: "2026-10-05T16:51:48.795393+00:00"
region: "BR"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Limonov: The Ballad (2024)

Directed by Kirill Serebrennikov · 2h 13m · ClassInd 16 · History, Drama

## Identity

Limonov: The Ballad

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/limonov-the-ballad
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** limonov-the-ballad
- **IMDb ID:** tt2963262
- **TMDB ID:** 495278
- **Wikidata ID:** Q112054671
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2963262/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/495278, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q112054671

**Fi1m score: 58** · Critics 55 from 6 reviews

*In a sentence:* Ben Whishaw works hard enough without having to compete with the camera

> Ben Whishaw keeps this restless biographical drama watchable, and the long takes have real excitement. But Kirill Serebrennikov allows the staging to distract from a thin account of what drives Eddie.

## Synopsis

Eduard ‘Eddie’ Limonov (Ben Whishaw) is the central figure in this biographical drama adapted from Emmanuel Carrère’s novel. Elena (Viktoriya Miroshnichenko) and Anna (Masha Mashkova) feature in his story, alongside Stephen (Tomas Arana), Lonya (Corrado Invernizzi) and Kuznetsov (Yevgeny Mironov). The cast also includes Andrey Burkovskiy as Yevgeny Yevtushenko / Poet and Donald Sumpter as Eddie’s Father. Kirill Serebrennikov directs from a screenplay written with Ben Hopkins and Paweł Pawlikowski, following Limonov in a film running 133 minutes.

## Review

*Limonov: The Ballad* gives Ben Whishaw an unruly central role and Kirill Serebrennikov plenty of opportunities to keep the camera moving. It is an intermittently exciting biographical drama, but we cannot recommend it without a substantial interest in the actor. The film is eager to make Eddie compelling, and much less successful at explaining what compels him. At 133 minutes, that becomes a considerable limitation: we spend a long time in his company without feeling that the film has asked enough difficult questions.

Ben Whishaw is the reason to stay with it. Playing Eduard ‘Eddie’ Limonov, he sustains a sense of unpredictability that keeps us watching even when the writing gives us little help in understanding the man. His commitment prevents Eddie’s contradictions from becoming merely a list of problems for the screenplay to address. There is always something worth attending to in the performance, although the actor cannot supply every connection the writing has neglected to make.

Roman Vasyanov’s cinematography is most impressive in the long takes, where the movement of crowds gives the camera something substantial to organise. We were exhilarated by those passages; the pleasure comes from watching so many people move through a shot without the staging becoming confused. Vladislav Ogay’s production design gets room to be seen within these extended shots, rather than disappearing behind the lead actor. The difficulty is that we often finish a sequence still thinking about how everybody was arranged, with little new understanding of Eddie.

Yuri Karikh’s editing does less to solve the larger problem of pace. Individual stretches have energy, yet the film grows wearing as it continues, and the later passages do not justify the time they take. Massimo Pupillo supplies the music, while the frequent soundtrack songs add another demand that we respond to Eddie’s rebelliousness. We do not need each fresh push quite so much as a pause in which to think about the man.

The screenplay by Kirill Serebrennikov, Ben Hopkins and Paweł Pawlikowski adapts Emmanuel Carrère’s novel, and it has a difficult task in making a coherent portrait of this contradictory subject. Coherence need not mean smoothing away the unpleasant or inconvenient parts of a life. Here, though, the contradictions too often serve as permission to move on before a behaviour has been examined. After a while, our curiosity became frustration, because the film kept presenting Eddie’s provocations as if their mere presence explained him.

A biographical drama can leave its subject difficult to like and still make the time spent with him worthwhile. This one sometimes seems too impressed by the difficulty itself. The director’s willingness to keep things unruly has its pleasures, and Ben Whishaw gives that approach more credibility than the writing earns. But another energetic sequence does not necessarily tell us anything we need to know about the person at its centre.

There is enough skill here to make the shortcomings irritating rather than merely dull. The long takes are worth attending to, and the central performance never feels like somebody simply fulfilling a contract. Neither can make up for the thinness of the portrait surrounding them. Approach it for Ben Whishaw, with the understanding that the writing leaves him doing considerably more than his share.

*Fi1m score 58, published 5 October 2026.*

## What the critics say

Critics are divided on Limonov: The Ballad, with praise clustering around Ben Whishaw’s committed performance and the film’s restless visual style. Whishaw’s ability to keep an elusive character compelling is central to Deadline’s enthusiastic response. IndieWire likewise finds the film entertaining and stylistically exuberant, despite reservations about its closing stretch. Even some less persuaded reviews admire the visual craft: The Hollywood Reporter praises the long takes and crowd choreography while finding the portrait irritating and undisciplined.

The broad spread of responses turns on whether that energy brings Limonov into focus or substitutes for understanding him. Deadline welcomes the refusal to pin him down; The Wrap finds that style overshadows insight. Variety offers the sharpest rejection, seeing lifeless mythologising beneath the rebellious presentation and faulting the handling of a troubling sexual encounter. The disagreement concerns the film’s approach to its subject, rather than simply its uneven pacing.

## Straight answers

**Is Limonov: The Ballad worth watching?**

*Limonov: The Ballad* is worth considering chiefly for Ben Whishaw’s performance; we score it 58 out of 100. We find real excitement in the crowded long takes, but the restless staging distracts from a thin account of Eddie’s motives, and 133 minutes becomes wearing without a substantial interest in the lead actor.

**How long is Limonov: The Ballad, and what is it rated?**

*Limonov: The Ballad* runs 2h 13m and is rated 16 by the ClassInd in Brazil. It is a history and drama film.

**Where can I watch Limonov: The Ballad in Brazil?**

*Limonov: The Ballad* is available to rent from Amazon Prime Video from R$6.90. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How does Limonov: The Ballad compare to Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters?**

*Limonov: The Ballad* is the less searching portrait; we recommend [*Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters*](https://film.one/film/mishima-a-life-in-four-chapters) for its more absorbing treatment of a writer’s art and political extremism. Whishaw and the energetic long takes sustain *Limonov*, while *Mishima* rewards patience with theatrical shifts between life and fiction, although we find its political questioning insufficient too.

**Is Limonov: The Ballad based on a true story or a book?**

*Limonov: The Ballad* is a biographical drama about Eduard ‘Eddie’ Limonov, adapted from Emmanuel Carrère’s novel rather than written directly for the screen. We find the screenplay’s account of his motives thin: it repeatedly presents his contradictions and provocations without examining them closely enough to explain the man.

**What should I watch after Limonov: The Ballad?**

After *Limonov: The Ballad*, try [*Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters*](https://film.one/film/mishima-a-life-in-four-chapters) (1985, Fi1m 86): A writer’s art and political extremism receive a more searching formal treatment. Then [*I'm Not There*](https://film.one/film/im-not-there) (2007, Fi1m 74): A fragmented portrait that makes changing identities worth the effort of following; and [*Naked*](https://film.one/film/naked) (1993, Fi1m 84): Another abrasive central performance, with sharper attention to the people around him.

### Reviews we read (6)

- **IndieWire**, Ryan Lattanzio (B+): The critic finds the film wildly entertaining and stylistically exuberant, despite pacing issues near the finale. They single out Ben Whishaw’s fearless, career-best performance and the film’s restless visual energy for praise. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/limonov-the-ballad-review-ben-whishaw-1235006702/)
- **Screen Daily**, Jonathan Romney (64/100, inferred): The accessible text identifies this as a Cannes review but does not reveal the critic’s overall verdict. The standfirst singles out Ben Whishaw’s commitment to playing Eduard Limonov. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/limonov-the-ballad-cannes-review/5193539.article)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Leslie Felperin (30/100, inferred): Felperin finds the biopic irritating and undisciplined, with its subject’s contradictions failing to cohere into a satisfying portrait. She praises the bravura long takes and crowd choreography, though she questions the frequent Lou Reed soundtrack. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/limonov-the-ballad-review-ben-whishaw-kirill-serebrennikov-1235900569/)
- **Variety**, Jessica Kiang (20/100, inferred): Kiang finds the film a showily unconvincing, lifeless mythologization that mistakes rebellious style for substance. She particularly faults its blunt treatment of a troubling sexual encounter, which fails to interrogate the assumptions behind it. [Read](https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/limonov-the-ballad-review-ben-whishaw-1236009366/)
- **Deadline**, Damon Wise (85/100, inferred): Wise finds the film an exhilarating, anarchic portrait that resists pinning down its subject. He especially praises Ben Whishaw for keeping Limonov’s slippery, enigmatic character compelling. [Read](https://deadline.com/2024/05/limonov-the-ballad-review-ben-whishaw-is-the-slippery-star-of-kirill-serebrennikov-exhilarating-punk-poet-biopic-cannes-film-festival-1235923165/)
- **The Wrap** (60/100, inferred): The review finds the film visually galvanizing but ultimately limited, with style overshadowing insight into Limonov. It praises Serebrennikov’s distinctive visual language and Ben Whishaw’s committed performance. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/limonov-the-ballad-review-ben-whishaw-shines-in-a-jukebox-musical-of-urban-squalor/)

## Details

- **Director:** Kirill Serebrennikov
- **Director:** Kirill Serebrennikov
- **Screenplay:** Kirill Serebrennikov, Ben Hopkins, Paweł Pawlikowski
- **Novel:** Emmanuel Carrère
- **Cinematography:** Roman Vasyanov
- **Editor:** Yuri Karikh
- **Music:** Massimo Pupillo
- **Production design:** Vladislav Ogay
- **Costume design:** Tatyana Dolmatovskaya
- **Producer:** Ilya Stuart, Lorenzo Gangarossa, Mario Gianani
- **Cast:** Ben Whishaw as Eduard 'Eddie' Limonov; Viktoriya Miroshnichenko as Elena; Masha Mashkova as Anna; Tomas Arana as Stephen; Corrado Invernizzi as Lonya; Yevgeny Mironov as Kuznetsov; Andrey Burkovskiy as Yevgeny Yevtushenko / Poet; Odin Lund Biron as Ethan/ Editor in Chief
- **Runtime:** 2h 13m
- **Certificate (ClassInd):** 16
- **Release (Brazil):** 12 April 2025
- **Genres:** History, Drama
- **Budget:** $10 million
- **Box office:** $378 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnrXUXIoxXA

## Where to watch in Brazil

- Amazon Prime Video: rent R$6.90, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy R$14.90, hd

*Checked 2026-10-05.*

Also available in: BE, BR, DK, FI, FR, JP, NO, SE, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters* (1985), Fi1m 86: A writer’s art and political extremism receive a more searching formal treatment. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/mishima-a-life-in-four-chapters.md)
- *I'm Not There* (2007), Fi1m 74: A fragmented portrait that makes changing identities worth the effort of following. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/im-not-there.md)
- *Naked* (1993), Fi1m 84: Another abrasive central performance, with sharper attention to the people around him. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/naked.md)
- *The Conformist* (1970), Fi1m 87: Political allegiance and personal weakness examined through precise, unsettling images. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-conformist.md)
- *An Angel at My Table* (1990), Fi1m 87: A writer’s life given patience, room and an interest in ordinary experience. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/an-angel-at-my-table.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/limonov-the-ballad