The Death of Stalin

... and yet this film does just that. It revolves around the power struggle that occurs at the death of Stalin in 1953, a man who had an iron grip on Russia for 30 years and enforced his will with terror, often randomly.

So when the sycophants who surround him are suddenly bereft of his soul, they are all jockeying for power while finding it very difficult to do the one thing that would get you tortured and killed as long as they can remember - independent thinking, or even making suggestions for that matter. A simple show of hands vote becomes a hilarious demonstration of group think. They all have a collective case of Stockholm Syndrome when it comes to Stalin, still afraid of a man who is dead.

Jeffrey Tambor is doing his character Hank from the 90s sitcom "The Larry Sanders Show", and Steve Buschemi, as Nikita Khrushchev, doesn't look like any picture of Khrushchev that I ever saw at any point in his life. Plus he's basically doing his "funny looking guy" schtick from Fargo, and yet it all works.

When Lavrenti Beria, head of the secret police and probably responsible for untold terrors, gently tells Stalin's daughter that she needs to leave Russia because people who are strange like she is don't live very long, it is practically a sweet intimate moment that runs counter to everything we know about the guy.

This is a bleak yet hilarious comedy built around real events. I'd highly recommend it.

Watched this at the cinema last night and although I was looking forward to it and was expecting it to be good I was still pleasantly surprised.

Firstly: the actors all put in very believable and impressive performances. A joy to behold. Secondly: the plot is as intruiging as it is funny and really keeps you glued to the screen. Thirdly: this made me laugh out loud at least five times during it's run-time. You know: the sort of laughs you just can't hold back even if you try.

In essence this is a very dark film that makes light of the crimes against humanity all these people were actually guilty of comitting. Some people might find it offensive that they are portrayed as quite funny and engaging characters. But I think Iannucci does such a good job reminding the audience of the nature of these people that he keeps a balance and really succeeds with this movie.

Very enjoyable. One of the best movies of the year. I really enjoyed this - and if you like whitty dialogue, good acting and an intelligently unfolded plot - you will too.

You might think The Death of Stalin was a parody or a black comedy or a farce. We know that the actors are playing actual people some of whom lived until the late 1980s. The weird thing is the actual events depicted in the movie happened in some form.

In real life, when Stalin was lying on the floor in his soiled pajamas after he suffered a stroke. They needed to call a meeting to decide whether to call a doctor. Stalin's personal physician was unavailable as he was being tortured at the time for suggesting Stalin needed more bed rest.

Armando Iannucci mines comedy gold in an absurd, surreal, darkly violent tale of who wants to be the next leader of the Soviet Union. It is not a historical tale, it is a story of what can happen in any society where dogma and the bullet become the main currencies.

There's no avoiding truths rapidly passed over in this depiction of chaos following the death of an evil dictator. Stalin had charm...to those who were not his subjects and were never a threat to his authority. He fooled many so-called intellectuals in the West but everyone around him knew the truth, and, most managed to tip-toe over eggshells in order to stay alive. To thrive in such an environment requires a certain kind of callous ruthlessness...perfectly depicted with suitable crass humour here. The cast is perfectly chosen...each very accomplished actor adding their particular star dust. There's more than a single sittings' content in this film which deserves another viewing. Impressive and engaging story-telling based on real life events. Bravo all.

A dark comedic depiction of the terror inflicted by Stalin and those around him. As utterly bizarre and bad taste as that sounds, this is utterly fantastic. The cast as incredible as you'll see in any film, Buscemi and Beale especially, but really, everyone is flawless. The dialogue is hysterically delivered without even the hint of a Russian accent and the whole thing has an air of farce, but one surrounded with firing squads, power struggles and gulags. Only Simon Russel Beale as Beria really terrifies, with back stabbing, double crossing and a plot as twisted as the deceptions on screen, but really it's Jason Issacs that steals the show, his entrance and performance is nothing short of majestic! Hello!!

8/10