Moscow police raid cinema that defied government ban on comedy film ‘The Death of Stalin’

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Russian police visit the Pioner movie theater in Moscow, Russia on Friday after it screened Scottish writer-director Armando Iannucci's ‘The Death of Stalin’.’ The Russian Culture Ministry has rescinded the permit for screening it. Photo: AP

Published: 1:40am, 27 Jan 2018Updated: 2:39am, 27 Jan 2018

Armed Russian police have raided a Moscow art house cinema that defied a government ban on the screening of the Scottish director Armando Iannucci’s dark comedy The Death of Stalin.

Six police officers and a number of plain clothes officials arrived at the Pioner cinema in central Moscow on Friday after the midday screening of the film, which revolves around the bitter infighting following the death of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin in 1953.

The country’s culture ministers have called the film “blasphemous” and said it will be examined for “extremism” but staff at cinema said further scheduled screenings will go ahead – despite threats of fines and closure from the authorities.

A woman walks past a monitor displaying the ‘Death of Stalin’ film trailer before a screening of the film on Thursday. Photo: Reuters

Plain clothes officials questioned staff and collected evidence that the film had been shown, but would only say that they were conducting an investigation. Management for Pioner declined to comment.

The culture ministry has warned that screening the film will result in fines and possible temporary closure.

[The Death of Stalin] insults our historic symbols – the Soviet anthem, orders and medals … [it is] blasphemous

Pavel Pozhigailo, a member of a ministry of culture advisory committee