In Stalin’s home city in Georgia, generations clash over his legacy

Joseph Stalin died more than 70 years ago, but the Soviet dictator’s legacy in the city of Gori, Georgia – where he was born and raised until the age of 15 – is still deeply contested. Goodnight, Mister Stalin explores this local divide through Nasi, an elderly woman who reveres Stalin as the brave leader who defeated the Nazis, and her much younger intellectual rival and close friend Zhana, who sees him as a murderer of millions.

The thoughtful documentary by the Danish director Benjamin Kodboel draws parallels between these two women – especially Zhana’s grief for her father, who died of a heart attack during Russia’s occupation of Gori in 2008, and Nasi’s sadness over the toppling of statues of Stalin across former Soviet countries and the death of her own father during the Second World War. An accomplished portrait of place stretched across generations, the piece makes for a nuanced look at the enduring ripples of Soviet-era politics, and how deeply divergent beliefs can be born of similar experiences and emotions.