The Death of Stalin (2018)

Nothing better than stumbling on a movie like this one without having a clue what it's going to be. I thought it was going to be a political movie about the life of Stalin, with cruel images and a dark sad story. But the truth is that it was quite the opposite, it's about Stalin, it's about that cruel passage in history, but it's satirical. I should have guessed it though when I saw the cast, with Paul Whitehouse (The Fast Show), with Jeffrey Tambor (Arrested Development), with Michael Palin (The Monty Python), and with Steve Buscemi (Fargo, The Big Lebowski). They are all actors that at one point made me laugh so hard. The Death Of Stalin, with such a great cast, is just hysterical at some points if you can get the paranoia those people lived in at that time, where you had to watch out for every single word you said, or for every opinion you had. In this movie it's just about that, the fear of doing or thinking something against the regime. So to me The Death Of Stalin was a pleasant surprise and I could only recommend it to anybody that likes satire.

I had to constantly pause the movie to check if some event mentioned in the movie (like a event concering Stalin's son) really happened, and more often than not it did. Really enjoyable!

More or less I guess - but the movie never goes into details what truly happened, rather keeping the satire and fun up. The acting is superb and the humor is as dark and twisted as you can imagine. PC this isn't, quite the opposite. And you can understand why some Russians might not like certain depictions of historical figures and events.So if you like wicked entertainment and are not afraid to laugh even when it seems wrong to do so, remember this is just a movie, so it's ok here. It's not like you are rooting for someone evil in reality. Also Jason Isaacs almost steals the movie entirely. There is nuance and there is just flat out ridiculous. But all in great quality and entertainment.

The Death of Stalin is stupid and dark. It knows that it's stupid and dark, which just adds to its brilliance. Armando Iannucci is a genius, and he really shines in making such a raunchy, yet brilliant picture. It always contrasts the violence and disgust of Russia with the comedy and bleak humor of the council, but never downplays either of them. It follows a large council of Russian officials fighting for power after the general secretary, Stalin, dies from a cerebral hemorrhage.This film flaunts itself as a ultra-dark comedy. The officials are all terrible people, but the villains are also terrible, so in a brilliant twist, Iannucci leaves you wondering who to root for. Even the main character is an awful, terrible character who uses human lives and destruction as a shield and uses death as a device to blame other things on other people. He's a control freak with a witty personality, but we still like him.Steve Buscemi was wonderful in the role of Khrushchev, and made the character so funny and likable. Simon Beale was Beria, who was the general 'villain'. He was hilarious, and he was very intimidating. Both Rupert Friend and Andrea Riseborough were great, and really did play off each other like quarreling siblings. Jason Isaacs has got to be the funniest character however. He's absolutely hilarious in his mannerisms and his joking nature. A standout performance by Jeffrey Tambor was presented too. He plays Georgy Malenkov, the new premier, and is very funny in his ineptitude. Other perfect performances were presented by Adrian McLoughlin, Ogla Kurylenko, Paul Whitehouse, Paul Chahidi, Dermot Crowley and James BarriscaleIf you want a rousing experience with fabulous performances, black comedy, and great and memorable scenes, this is a must see. I highly recommend it to anyone. 9 out of 10!