Film: Death of Stalin (2017)

The Death of Stalin



I don’t think Armando Iannucci could have picked a better adaptation than Fabien Nury and Thierry Robin’s graphic novel The Death of Stalin. The film has the same name and essentially from the very outset quickly becomes The Thick of It but with consequences: you don’t just lose your job, you die.
Doing what it says on the tin, the film follows the last day or two, the death and the immediate aftermath of Russian dictator Joseph Stalin, in which all his underlings battle it out discreetly to be the next to step in his shoes. Labelled as a dark comedy, the darkness comes from the truth in Russia at this time. However much it makes hilarious jokes (and it is hilarious by the way) this deceit, death and division was simply the way Russia operated at that time.
But you don’t need to know that to enjoy the film. Though seeming specific and historical, Iannucci gives you all you need in the opening titles and even if you missed that, all you really need to know is Stalin and his government were bad and corrupt. What follows are a sequence of simply set up scenes for the film, relying solely on a great cast and very British humour. It’s honestly so simple in design and effects that it could easily be done in a theatre, indeed the scene, in which the committee must carry Stalins body out of his study is very much in the vein of a play.
The Death of Stalin is actually playing quite a few different games in terms of who its attracting. For example, with its cast and history it suggests sophistication and rings true to an older generations younger years, however, with its emphasis of universality over specificity, as well as the same creator of The Thick of It (a mainstay of Netflix for a while now), younger audiences will not be put off. They’ve also cast someone like Steve Buscemi too, which along with its subject of Stalin,has proven to be a bit of a hit in America.

Overall it is a quirky, funny satire and not a Hollywood production, so it should be greeted with satisfaction, to a younger and older audience.

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