In case the hype passed you by, the recently released "Turkish Gambit," adapted from the Boris Akunin novel of the same name and featuring the enigmatic, stuttering detective Erast Fandorin, went on to become one of the highest grossing films in Russian cinema history.

With its tagline, "The games are over. Now it's the real Fandorin in the real deal," "The State Counselor" is boldly declaring itself to be the real McCoy, and "Turkish Gambit" merely an upstart usurper to the Fandorin throne - a clever piece of marketing, since both films were made by the same studio.

Whereas "Gambit" was an action movie played out on the sweeping panoramas of the battlefield, "The State Counselor" is a court intrigue, set largely in the interior and deriving most of its thrills from effective character interaction rather than explosions. Even so, it is obvious that on all but the most superficial levels "The State Counselor" is a far superior film.

Much of its success is down to a highly talented all-star cast, a "Who's Who?" of Russian stars past and present, including Oleg Menshikov in the lead role of the detective Erast Fandorin.

Housewives' favorite Menshikov is a huge star coasting on his last big successes "East-West" in 1999 and "The Barber of Siberia" in 1998.

"The State Counselor" might just be the ticket. Like Hercule Poirot, his Fandorin is pale, fastidious and immaculately turned out. Like Sherlock Holmes, he seems permanently distracted and sports a healthy gamut of eccentricities, including a mild stutter and an endearing obsession with counting (which is developed into a motif for the film).

Menshikov makes a strong mark early in the film, where, surrounded by bumbling bureaucrats and plodding policemen, he comes across as a streak of lightning, a bundle of pure energy, barely waiting for the director to say "cut" before striding out of the scene. But no sooner has he earned our undivided attention than, in broad daylight and beneath the detective's very nose, the film is stolen out from under him.

The perpetrator of this crime is Nikita Mikhalkov, Russia's one-man cinema industry, who plays Pozharsky, a senior official designated to help Fandorin solve the case.

In a performance of stunning authority, Mikhalkov dominates literally every scene, generating menace and humor in equal measure, often at the same time. From the moment Mikhalkov enters, Menshikov becomes a pale wallflower and, like the rest of the cast, can only stand well clear of Mikhalkov and act around him.

Unkind critics have hinted that Mikhalkov's performance is not so much acting as it is an accurate self-portrait. If this is true, then rarely has an actor been so in touch with his dark side.

The plot of "The State Counselor" has Fandorin on the trail of a terrorist cell led by Grin, played by St. Petersburg actor Konstantin Khabensky. A new star in the cinematic firmament, Khabensky's appearance follows his success in cult fantasy hit "Nochnoi Dozor" (2004). His casting as a terrorist, out to undermine the reliable and cozy world of Menshikov and Mikhalkov, could be a startlingly apt metaphor for the Russian cinema industry if his stock continues to rise.

As satisfying as "The State Counselor" is, at times you can't help thinking that it might be better suited to the small screen. (The film is backed by state television channel ORT and will reportedly be broadcast in expanded espisodes after its cinema run.)

Indeed, no big-screen film would use its hero so sparingly. Fandorin has less and less impact on events as the story progresses, eventually becoming a virtual bystander to the main events. In an extraordinary choice by the filmmakers, in the climactic scene of the movie, which doesn't disappoint, the detective is literally nowhere to be seen.

But the major criticism is reserved for the woefully ill-judged closing sequence, where a blaring rock song, seemingly obligatory in Russian films these days, destroys the bittersweet final moments of the film.

If you leave before the song starts, you'll be left with the memory of one of the most entertaining Russian films in years. If this Fandorin returns for future installments, it remains to be seen whether he can hold up a movie by himself, but on the strength of this outing my money is on Menshikov.