The life and career of the brutal Soviet dictator, Josef Stalin. Through the eyes and memories of Anna Aliluyeva, Stalin’s granddaughter, the film traces the rise of the Bolshevik tyrant from Lenin’s return from exile to his brutal struggle with Trotsky, the creation of his feared secret police and the merciless inner workings of his regime. As Anna recounts her grandfather’s life, viewers gain an intimate, personal perspective on the paranoia and purges that left even his closest circles living in constant fear.
Acting
Duvall's whisper-to-scream menace is genuinely unsettling.
Production
HBO money in '92 bought actual Soviet locations.
Costume
Military uniforms so crisp they threaten you.
Director
Ivan Passer
Robert Duvall
Josef Stalin
Julia Ormond
Nadya Alliluyeva
Maximilian Schell
Vladimir Lenin
Jeroen Krabbé
Bukharin
Joan Plowright
Olga
Jim Carter
Sergo
Miriam Margolyes
Krupskaya
Frank Finlay
Sergei
Roshan Seth
Beria
Daniel Massey
Trotsky
András Bálint
Zinoviev
John Bowe
Voroshilov
Murray Ewan
Khrushchev
Stella Gonet
Zina
Ravil Isyanov
Yakov
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Duvall spent months studying Russian to nail Stalin's Georgian accent, then was told to tone it down so audiences could understand him.
Released months after the Soviet Union collapsed, this was Hollywood's first major attempt to process the archives finally opening — and it shows in the almost ghoulish detail.
US
