The Khodorkovsky case is typical of the "oprichnina" - the system of oppression.

In Russia no one is surprised when an official accepts a bribe while at the same time portraying the state as some sacred entity to which the bourgeois should pay homage. This all sounds absurd. But for Russians it is completely normal.

As a storyteller I was influenced by the Moscow underground, where it was common to be apolitical.

The West should be even more vocal in insisting that the Russians respect human rights.

In Russia only those who are loyal to the people in power can become wealthy.

Orthodox churches, autocracy and national traditions are supposed to form a new national ideology in Russia. This would mean that Russia would be overtaken by its past, and our past would be our future.

My television teaches me that everything was wonderful in the Soviet Union. According to the programs I watch, the KGB and apparatchiks were angels, and the Stalin era was so festive that the heroes of the day must still be celebrated today.