In one interview, director Elem Klimov considered his last film, "Come and See" to be his best film, but "Agonyia," or "Rasputin," is his second most well-known film, yet he succeeded only partially. Regarding the depiction of the final days of Imperial Russia, this film is a very fine work, but its other aspects are rather mediocre.
Regarding the depiction of Rasputin himself, it is okay, but it doesn't create much emotional response to the man, positive or negative. The depiction does not given any insights into the man himself beyond what you could learn from reading his Wikipedia page. The movie was, also too long for its own good, and could've easily been 20 minutes shorter, telling concisely what took place leading up to and at Raputin's violent death.
Where this really movie shines, is how it mixes the film's scenes with historical footage of that time, which Klimov similarly did with "Come and See".
Overall, don't expect this to be anything close to the quality of Klimov's final film, as it is deeply, deeply inferior, but if you've seen Klimov's other films and just want to see all of them, then this may be worth the watch.
Regarding the depiction of Rasputin himself, it is okay, but it doesn't create much emotional response to the man, positive or negative. The depiction does not given any insights into the man himself beyond what you could learn from reading his Wikipedia page. The movie was, also too long for its own good, and could've easily been 20 minutes shorter, telling concisely what took place leading up to and at Raputin's violent death.
Where this really movie shines, is how it mixes the film's scenes with historical footage of that time, which Klimov similarly did with "Come and See".
Overall, don't expect this to be anything close to the quality of Klimov's final film, as it is deeply, deeply inferior, but if you've seen Klimov's other films and just want to see all of them, then this may be worth the watch.