The Fourth State (German: Die vierte Macht) is a 2012 German thriller film directed by Dennis Gansel and starring Moritz Bleibtreu, Kasia Smutniak, Max Riemelt, Rade Serbedzija, Mark Ivanir and Isabella Vinet.

13 years later, the German tabloid journalist Paul Jensen (Moritz Bleibtreu) arrives in Moscow to work on a magazine owned by his late father's friend Onjegin (Rade Serbedzija).

Paul suggests that Katja rewrite the article and that he then publishes it in the celebrity section on account of the journalist's fame.

The following day the two meet at a protest rally and Paul encounters Katja's brother Anatoly (Grigoriy Dobrygin).

Paul is sent to the prison known as "Little Chechnya" due to the large number of Chechen people held captive there.

Paul is attacked and beaten up by an inmate but is saved by and taken under the wings of Aslan (Mark Ivanir) who serves as the leader of the Chechens.

In a conversation Aslan tells Paul that he knew his father, Norbert Jensen (Björn von der Wellen).

Paul decides to sign a contract that will have him expelled to Germany in exchange for him declaring having been treated fairly by the authorities.

He confronts Onjegin with evidence he retrieves from his flat belonging to his late father about authorities' plot to hide secrets behind the start of Chechnya's war.

[4] Scene Stealers gave a favourable review and praised the actors and the director for making the film feel frighteningly realistic.