History -- History's Mysteries : True Story Of Rasputin, The Review

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(More customer reviews)This look at the intriguing life of the Mad Monk, Rasputin, is informed by information from the long-missing Rasputin Files which emerged in 1995. In 1917, the Russian provisional government had launched the ''Extraordinary Commission of Inquiry for the Investigation of Illegal Acts by Ministers and Other Responsible Persons of the Czarist Regime," the 13th volume of which was never published and was presumed lost until a summary of it appeared in 1964. That 13th volume, now known as the Rasputin File, turned up at auction in 1995; it contained the transcripts of interviews and interrogations conducted into the influence of "dark forces" behind the czar - and, as such, gives us added insight into Rasputin's life, death, and influence over Nicholas II and his family.
The documents in the Rasputin File help answer several questions, one being the manner in which Rasputin was initially introduced to Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra; it also sheds new light on his controversial death. The story has always been that Rasputin was poisoned, then shot, then beaten and kicked and thrown into a river (where he drowned), but at least one researcher interviewed here suggests that the real story is somewhat less dramatic. The information in the Rasputin Files also does much to put to rest any suspicions of an affair between Rasputin and the Czarina. Clearly, it was Rasputin's uncanny ability to heal the czar's only son, the sole heir to the throne, which tied him so closely to Alexandra. Young Alexis suffered from hemophilia, and Rasputin was able to save his life on several occasions over the space of ten years - even from afar, after having been temporarily banished by the czar in wake of his embarrassing behavior. As this documentary makes clear, no one really knows how Rasputin was able to do this. It goes a long way toward explaining how Rasputin achieved and maintained such a strong influence over the czar and his family, even as the public increasingly looked upon the man as a primary source of all their troubles.
The True Story of Rasputin is an excellent look at Rasputin's life from his boyhood in Siberia to his infamous murder in St. Petersburg, bursting several myths along the way. It also affords the viewer useful new insight into the vulnerable state of mind of Alexandra and the way in which this might have been exploited by Rasputin. What I found most interesting, however (apart from descriptions of Rasputin's shockingly lewd public behavior) was the speculation that the historical account of Rasputin's death may contain some degree of prevarication. There's no doubt that the man was difficult to kill (in 1914, he had been viciously stabbed - to the point that his intestines were exposed - by a woman thinking he was the Anti-Christ), but there is at least a hint of evidence that could rule out the use of poison in the assassination attempt.
Overall, this is a very informative documentary, especially insomuch as it touches upon Rasputin's life from his earliest days to his ignominious end. It's always difficult to separate fact from fiction when examining the life of Russia's Mad Monk, but this documentary does a particularly good job of doing just that. Making use of the new information found in the rediscovered Rasputin Secret Police file, The True Story of Rasputin goes a long way to earning its title.

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