The Death of Stalin ⚰️
Happy Thursday! I hope you’re enjoying this gorgeous week.
Today’s movie is political satire The Death of Stalin (2018)—streaming on Netflix. If you’re finding it hard to stomach our current political climate, The Death of Stalin offers a hilarious respite much like writer/director Armando Iannucci’s magnum opus Veep. If you needed more of an endorsement, former President Obama included in his list of favorite films in 2018. Here’s the trailer.
The Death of Stalin is about the parasitic (and bumbling) cronies of dictator Josef Stalin who find themselves in a desperate and frantic struggle to become the next leader of the Soviet Union. Hilarity ensues.
What I love about The Death of Stalin is its ability to make smart comedy out of the dumbest characters imaginable. Every character is power-hungry, ruthless, and highly incapable of coherently accomplishing anything (sound familiar?). Their desperate and often ill-advised attempts to position themselves as the next leader are hilariously inept, but sharply staged pieces of slapstick humor (or horror).
Like Veep, so much of the appeal of The Death of Stalin is watching horrible people do horrible things and have it blow up in their faces. It’s schadenfreude at its finest. However, it’s also perhaps a little too relevant for our current political moment. At the very least, it gives us permission to laugh at it for a fleeting 107 minutes.
The Death of Stalin is available to buy or rent on Prime Video, Apple TV, and YouTube.
Additional reading (or watching) 📚
Make it a double feature: Election
In the midst of a particularly contentious election for student body president at a Nebraska high school, a teacher (Matthew Broderick) makes it his mission to stop the potential landslide victory of an ambitious senior, Tracy Flick (Reese Witherspoon). [Where to watch]
The actual history of The Death of Stalin
“History Buffs” breaks down the actual story of what happened following the death of Josef Stalin through the lens of the film. Watch here.
One trailer you should watch: On the Rocks 🥃
Enjoy this weekend. Do something to make someone smile.
See you Monday —
Karl (@karl_delo)