THE DEATH OF STALIN (2017), directed by Armando Iannuci (IN THE LOOP), brings together an amazing comedic cast to present the power struggle in the Soviet leadership following the death of Josef Stalin in 1953. While the trailer makes it look like wacky slapstick, it’s remarkably sophisticated and subtle in its humor, which ranges from dark to deepest black.

Adapted from a French graphic novel LA MORT DE STALINE and based on real events, the film starts with Stalin’s death and then proceeds to introduce the members of the Politburo, who align around two figures, NKVD (secret police) head Lavrentiy Beria (Simon Russell Beale), who uses the new chairman Malenkov (Jeffrey Tambor) as a puppet, and Moscow Party Head Nikita Khrushchev (Steve Buscemi). These two men play out a power struggle involving Stalin’s family, other Politburo members, and the Red Army. The film is comedic, though again the humor is pretty dark, rooted in Soviet paranoia, state terror, and with the stakes for this game’s players being ultimate power or death. Be sure to look up the actual events surrounding the film, as many of even its wackier events actually occurred.

I loved it and highly recommend it as a remarkably funny and engaging film.

STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI renewed my faith in the STAR WARS universe. I’m going to review it, but first let me get a few things out of my system. I was 10 years old when STAR WARS hit the big screen, and my exploded along with the Death Star. I saw it eight times that year on the big screen and loved every minute of this incredibly simple yet powerful space opera. Despite the Ewoks, the entire first trilogy wowed me. Then George Lucas crushed any love I had for this universe with his three boring prequels. ROGUE ONE had great action but overall it was a forgettable movie, as I didn’t care about any of the stock characters. STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS similarly phoned it in with yet another rehashing of plots, cardboard villains, and stunning action and effects I found boring because I couldn’t be made to care about any of the characters. Han Solo, a beloved character, is brought back (wearing the same outfit he wore 30 years ago, apparently fashions never change, just as Jedi like to wear the same clothes as Tatooine water farmers), only to be thrown away like garbage. I wasn’t angry about it, just bored.

STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI starts off the same way, with the plucky rebels fighting the generic came-out-of-nowhere-to-destroy-the-helpless-Republic First Order led by a foppish and cartoonish villain, undeveloped characters doing stuff, huge stakes that are presented without any real context or meaning. Empty calories, but that’s okay, I was expecting fluff. Then the movie took an unexpected turn into telling a real story. Luke Skywalker steals the show, with Mark Hamill pouring his heart into Luke’s swansong. His internal conflict is gripping and real, which makes his conflict with both Rey and Kylo Ren tense and believable. Rey’s search for meaning and her strange connection with Kylo Ren add more strength to the story and make us care.

The script keeps setting up typical action punchlines and story questions, only to defy the usual rote resolution. Built on the foundation of a good story, the action scenes become gripping, from the fight with the emperor’s guards to the counterattack against the First Order fleet. Luke’s return to war is fantastic, his final scene with Leia touching. There are plenty of cute moments and one-liners to comically diffuse tension, but they aren’t shoved in your face with a saccharine grin. I don’t really care about the STAR WARS mythos anymore, so I can’t quibble about things like Rey’s parents, Snoke, or anything like that. I just wanted to be entertained by being made to care about the story and the people in it, and the movie accomplished that for me.

So overall, it wasn’t the best movie I’ve seen in the past year, but it was solid, and for me, it was the best STAR WARS film since the original trilogy.

I was blown away by OCCUPIED (available on Netflix), a Norwegian TV series (created by bestselling author Jo Nesbø) about a Russian “silk glove” invasion of Norway. As a political, spy, and police thriller, it’s hands-down one of the best things I’ve seen on a small screen. Just finished the second season, which is as good as the first, with enough twists and ratcheting tension to satisfy any thriller fan, and with enough smarts to satisfy those who prefer TV written for thinking adults.

At the end of the first season, Jesper Berg, the prime minister, joins the resistance as open warfare erupts between the country and Russia. The second season opens with the prime minister in exile after eight months of guerilla warfare produced an uneasy cease fire. The new prime minister hates his no-win job and resigns, creating an opportunity for Berg to come back. His assistant Anita, however, makes a pitch to parliament for a new government that results in her becoming prime minister. Anita must now navigate Russian influence and maintain the peace, while Berg must keep the heat on and disrupt that peace to get the Russians out and him back in power.

The result is a powerful political thriller with realistic characters in realistic conflict, motivations and actions that are rarely morally clear, and extremely smart machinations and twists that keep you guessing and surprised. I loved it, and I’m hoping a third season gets made.