The Russian Revolution of 1917 is one of the most controversial events of the 20th century. Three men - Lenin, Trotsky, Stalin - emerged from obscurity to forge an entirely new political system. In the space of six months they turned the largest country on earth into the first Communist state. Was this a triumph of people power or a coup d’etat that led to blood-soaked totalitarianism? A hundred years later, the Revolution still sparks ferocious debate. In this documentary, writers and historians, including Martin Amis, Orlando Figes, Helen Rappaport, Simon Sebag-Montefiore and China Miéville, battle over the meaning of the Russian Revolution and spell out how it shapes the world we live in today

Beginning in 1881 this short yet comprehensive documentary tracks the downfall of the Romanov dynasty and the evolution of Lenin's Ulyanov family, from the terroristic acts and subsequent hanging of his brother to his own hunger for a revolution.