Her truth became their weapon — but the silence still echoes.
Anna Politkovskaya (Maxine Peake) is a fearless Russian journalist whose defiant coverage of the Second Chechen War exposes Kremlin atrocities at great personal risk. Backed by her editor Dmitry Muratov (Ciarán Hinds) at Novaya Gazeta, Anna travels into war‑torn Chechnya, giving voice to civilians and rebels while enduring poisoning, threats, and intimidation. As tensions escalate, her marriage to broadcaster Sasha Politkovsky (Jason Isaacs) frays under the strain.
Directed by James Strong with Sean Penn as executive producer, Words of War offers a gripping biographical drama that honours Anna’s courage and the deeper meaning of press freedom in authoritarian regimes. Though its style is measured, Peake’s nuanced performance anchors a story that resonates starkly with today’s global threats to journalism.