| Children of the Revolution |
| Genre: | Comedy |
| Year: | 1996 |
| Rating: | R |
| Country: | Austrailia |
| Cast: | Judy Davis, Sam Niell, Geoffrey Rush |
| Credits: | Directed by: Peter Duncan |
Synopsis
The rendition of "You're the Top" that congratulates Stalin's kiler, with a trio that includes Nikita Khrushchev dancing happily in the background, is one of many reasons to regard Children of the Revolution as something different. Clearly Peter Duncan's arch, zany comedy is not the usual post-mortem on the collapse ot Soviet Communism and the dissillusionment ot ideologues around the world
Mr. Duncan, the rare lawyer turned film maker, is cheeky beyond beliefe in imagining the brief, fatal romance between a ludicrously suave Stalin and a fierce Australian admirer. Named Joan, mabye in honor of an equally stern but less accomodating martyr, she attends the 1952 Communist Party conference and winds up the mother of the dictator's child.
It manages to be irreverently funny despite a subject that is no laughing matter. Judy Davis - young and old, funny and sad, witty and humorless - is at her entertaining best as a lifelong relentless revolutionary. This Australian film, whose superb cast also includes sparky Sam Neill and a charmingly soft Geoffrey Rush (Shine), is a fanciful black comedy about Joseph Stalin's legacy, figuratively and literally.
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