The Death of Stalin (2017 Armando Ianucci & co-scr)

Coincidentally another film set in 1953, this a black comedy about the power grab following Stalin's death. Great idea to keep all accents regional - particularly effective in Jeremy Isaac's brash Northern Field Marshal.

Great cast: Simon Russell Beale, Steve Buscemi, Jeffrey Tambor (always thought he was weird looking - now can confirm it), Andrea Riseborough, Olga Kurylenko, Michael Palin, Rupert Friend (hilarious as buffoon son), Paul Whitehouse, Paddy Considine, Adrian McLoughlin (Stalin), Tom Brooke (The Boat That Rocked), Paul Ready (Witness for the Prosecution), Dermot Crowley (Luther), Karl Johnson, Sylvestra le Touzel.

Has the same sort of mixture of blackness and buffoonery that made Four Lions so successful, plus the kind of political silliness familiar from The Thick Of It. Based on the (fabulous looking) comic novel by Thierry Robin (artist) and Fabien Nury (writer), who wrote the original screenplay. This screenplay was by Armando, David Schneider (actor and writer on The Day Today) and Ian Martin (Veep, The Thick of It, Time Trumpet), with additional material by Peter Fellows.

Good music from Christoper Willis, cinematography by Zac Nicholson (The Honorable Woman, Capital), editing by Peter Lambert and production design Cristina Casali, shot in the Ukraine and England.

That wonderful bit of music I recognised halfway through is from Tchaikovsky's 6th, and Olga plays Mozart's piano concerto 23 in A major.