A dance troupe from the autonomous region of Abkhazia in western Georgia perform for Stalin, Lavrentiy Beria, Abkhaz leader Nestor Lakoba, and other high-ranking party officials in the Black Sea coastal town of Gagra.
Acting
Petrenko's Stalin: terrifyingly banal, never raises voice.
Direction
Kara traps you in the room, no escape, no cuts.
Practical Effects
Real Georgian dance troupe performing for their fictional executioners.
Director
Yuriy Kara
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Based on the real 1936 'Feast of Abkhazia' where Lakoba and 15 others were poisoned by Beria on Stalin's orders. The film was shot in the actual Gagra palace.
Released during glasnost, this was among the first Soviet films to explicitly condemn Stalin's crimes. Audiences reportedly sat in stunned silence.
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