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Death of Stalin

Would be interested to hear what people thought of this film. It has been incredibly well reviewed with lots of people claiming it is the film of the year so I went with high expectations. Whilst it is undoubtedly brilliantly made and Simon Russell Beale was brilliant I came out of the cinema not entirely sure it worked. I can see the point that you might be able to take away the power of casually done mass murder and systematic abuse of women and girls by satirising it but for all the talent of the actors, writers and directors I don't think it hit its target.

Helena Cavanagh ● 2727d3 Comments

They would be squeamish about him portraying a man who was abusive to women but okay with the fact that he was personally responsible for the murder of tens of thousands?

Tricia Arbuthnot ● 2721d

The humour is very dark and bitter - almost Russian in tone. I think a lot of 'Thick of It Fans' went to it expecting something along the same lines and the approach is similar but the subject matter is very different. There certainly were a few uncomfortable moments in which you wondered was the film treating historical events in an appropriate way but there were also some laugh out loud moments as well. Lots of brilliant performances to including Jason Issacs and Steve Buscemi but I agree Simon Russell Beale was outstanding. Would probably have been a shoe-in for best supporting actor in the Oscars but I suspect Hollywood will be squeamish about giving an award for a portrayal of a man who was so abusive to women.

Andy Jones ● 2724d

I agree, Helena, and felt disappointed. I think the problem is that when a film gets such a big build-up, you're almost bound to find that it can't live up to the hype. It's not that I didn't enjoy it and, as you say, Simon RB was fantastic, it just wasn't the film of the year the way people would have you believe.BTW, for my money the films of the year are Land of Mine and Call Me By Your Name. :)

Susan Kelly ● 2726d