A film that can succeed in being both hilariously funny and soberingly scary is a special one indeed. Armando Iannucci’s Death of Stalin manages both.

It is 1953 and Joseph Stalin has suffered a heart attack causing all those around him to scramble for power. The fact that Stalin’s reign was predicated on fear and surveillance means that everyone is looking over their shoulder and worried about what they say whilst trying to plot at the same time. This provides perfect comedy fodder for the man responsible for political comedies The Thick of It and Veep.

Everyone involved gets incredibly funny moments, made all the more brilliant by the fact that no one attempts a Russian accent. When Jeffrey Tambor is declaring how Russian he is in an American accent or Jason Isaacs is being a bullish General with a Yorkshire brogue it seems even funnier through its absurdity. And perhaps employing Steve Buscemi as a scheming Nikita Khrushchev is the best casting of all.

Even when it becomes darker in its final moments it manages to cut the tension with a moment of levity whilst still conveying the message.

An hilarious must watch film.