Ensemble

Rating: 8/10 (26 October 2017)

What makes this film special is its outstanding ensemble of character actors. The committee room scenes in particular are a riot of jockeying for position, snide remarks and politicking of the highest, or should that be lowest, order. Performers of this calibre could bring even the dullest script to life, but it so happens they have excellent material to work with here, and they rise to it like the thoroughbreds they are.
British theatregoers will be familiar with names that are probably not at all known elsewhere: Dermot Crowley, Paul Chahidi and Karl Johnson are hugely respected in the UK for their distinguished careers on stage. Topping the lot is Simon Russell Beale, the current king of British classical acting, at last finding a film role that gives him an opportunity to show what he can do. He and Steve Buscemi are the central antagonists in THE DEATH OF STALIN, and it is a joy to watch them at each other's throats.
Michael Palin, Jeffrey Tambor, Jason Isaacs, Andrea Riseborough, Rupert Friend, Paddy Considine, Tom Brooke...We are truly spoilt.