The Death of Stalin (2017)

Moscow, 1953. After being in power for nearly 30 years, Soviet dictator Josef Stalin takes ill and quickly dies. Now the members of the Council of Ministers scramble for power.

Director:

Armando Iannucci

Writers:

Armando Iannucci, David Schneider

Stars:

Steve Buscemi, Simon Russell Beale, Jeffrey Tambor

Nominated for 2 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 18 wins & 32 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Olga Kurylenko	...	Maria Veniaminovna Yudina
Tom Brooke	...	Sergei
Paddy Considine	...	Andreyev
Justin Edwards	...	Spartak Sokolov - Conductor 1
Adrian McLoughlin	...	Josef Stalin
Simon Russell Beale	...	Lavrenti Beria
Jeffrey Tambor	...	Georgy Malenkov
Steve Buscemi	...	Nikita Khrushchev
Michael Palin	...	Vyacheslav Molotov
Paul Ready	...	NKVD Officer Delov
Yulya Muhrygina	...	Woman in Layers of Clothes
Andrey Korzhenevskiy	...	Man in Layers of Clothes
Roger Ashton-Griffiths	...	Musician 1 (as Roger Ashton Griffiths)
Jeremy Limb	...	Musician 2
Andy Gathergood	...	Citizen Bundled into Car

Storyline

In early-1953 Moscow, under the Great Terror's heavy cloak of state paranoia, the ever-watchful Soviet leader, Joseph Stalin, collapses unexpectedly of a brain hemorrhage. Inevitably, when his body is discovered the following morning, a frenetic surge of raw panic spreads like a virus among the senior members of the Council of Ministers as they scramble to maintain order, weed out the competition, and, ultimately, take power. But in the middle of a gut-wrenching roller-coaster of incessant plotting, tireless machinations, and frail allegiances, absolutely no one is safe; not even the feared chief of the secret police, Lavrenti Beria. In the end, who will prevail after the death of Stalin?

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Plot Keywords:

satire | black comedy | soviet union | nikita khrushchev character | based on comic book | 

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Taglines:

He's dying to replace him.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | History | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

rated R for language throughout, violence and some sexual references

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Germany] Official website (au)

Country:

UK France Belgium Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 March 2018 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Death of Stalin

Filming Locations:

Blythe House, 23 Blythe Road, West Kensington, London, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$184,805, 11 March 2018, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$8,041,828, 26 July 2018

Company Credits

Production Co:

Quad Productions, Main Journey, Gaumont

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When the Politburo first discovers Stalin's comatose body the morning after his stroke and move him to his bed, they briefly allude to how they "got rid of the good doctors in Moscow" when discussing how to deal with the situation. This was a reference to the Doctors' Plot, an anti-Semitic campaign issued by Stalin which targeted various medical doctors of Jewish ancestry under the accusation of their conspiring to assassinate various Soviet leaders, that occurred between 1952 and 1953.

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Goofs

Zhukov is introduced with the caption "Field Marshal Zhukov - Head of the Soviet Army" The rank of Field Marshal was abolished in Russia in 1917, Zhukov's rank was Marshal of the Soviet Union (he is usually referred to as Marshal Zhukov). Nor was he head of the army at the time of Stalin's death, as he had fallen out of favour with Stalin.

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Quotes

Caption: There will be a brief time of mourning.

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Crazy Credits

Black-and-white photographs of the main characters appear over the end credits, but various figures are airbrushed out, have their faces defaced, or have other people superimposed over them, as per Soviet photos of Trotsky and purge victims.

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Connections

Referenced in Vdud: Nikita Mikhalkov (2018)

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Soundtracks

Symphony No. 6, Op. 74 in B Minor
Written by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Performed by Galaxy Symphonic Orchestra

User Reviews

Death…. Torture…. Child Abuse….  LOL??

Armando Iannucci is most familiar to TV audiences on both sides of the pond for his cutting political satire of the likes of "Veep" and "The Thick of It", with his only previous foray into directing movies being "In the Loop":  a spin-off of the latter series.  Lovers of his work will know that he sails very close to the wind on many occasions, such that  watching can be more of a squirm-fest than enjoyment.

It should come as no surprise then that his new film – "The Death of Stalin" – follows that same pattern, but transposed into the anarchic and violent world of 1950's Russia. Based on a French comic strip, the film tells the farcical goings on surrounding the last days of the great dictator in 1953. Stalin keeps distributing his "lists" of undesirables, most of who will meet unpleasant ends before the end of the night. But as Stalin suddenly shuffles off his mortal coil, the race is on among his fellow commissariat members as to who will ultimately succeed him.

The constitution dictates that Georgy Malenkov (an excellently vain and vacillating Jeffrey Tambor) secedes but, as a weak man, the job is clearly soon going to become vacant again and spy- chief Lavrentiy Beria (Simon Russell Beale) and Nikita Khrushchev (Steve Buscemi) are jostling for position.  (No spoilers, but you'll never guess who wins!).  Colleagues including Molotov (Michael Palin) and Mikoyan (Paul Whitehouse) need to decide who to side with as the machinations around Stalin's funeral become more and more desperate.

The film starts extremely strongly with the ever-excellent Paddy Considine ("Pride") playing a Radio Russia producer tasked with recording a classical concert, featuring piano virtuoso Maria Yudina (Olga Kurylenko, "Quantum of Solace"). A definition of paranoia in action! We then descend into the chaos of Stalin's Russia, with mass torture and execution colouring the comedy from dark-grey to charcoal- black in turns.

There is definitely comedy gold in there:  Khrushchev's translation of his drunken scribblings from the night before (of things that Stalin found funny and - more importantly - things he didn't) being a high point for me. Stalin's children Svetlana (Andrea Riseborough, "Nocturnal Animals") and Vasily (Rupert Friend, "Homeland") add knockabout humour to offset the darker elements, and army chief Georgy Zhukov (Jason Isaacs, "Harry Potter") is a riot with a no-nonsense North-of-England accent. 

The film held my interest throughout, but the comedy is just so dark in places it leaves you on edge throughout. The writing is also patchy at times, with some of the lines falling to the ground as heavily as the dispatched Gulag residents.

It's not going to be for everyone, with significant violence and gruesome scenes, but go along with the black comic theme and this is a film that delivers rewards.

(For the graphical review of the movie, please visit bob-the-movie- man.com or One Mann's Movies on Facebook. Thanks).