Stalins Wife (2005)

At the tender age of sixteen Nadezhda Alliluyev married Joseph Stalin twenty three years her senior Throughout their fourteen years of family life Nadezhda stood by as Stalin transformed from the ordinary revolutionary into the unlimited dictator of Russia a semigod whose portraits replaced Christian orthodox icons in the corners of peasants huts One morning she was found dead in her bed revolver by her side Up to this day historians continue the heated debate as to whether she had killed herself or was murdered by Stalin Tsukermans film is an attempt to solve the riddles of the notsodistant past weaving stories within stories and blending commentary from remaining relatives friends and historians with rare archival footage The film provides a fascinating overview of the early history of the USSR while simultaneously exploring the myriad questions surrounding this complex relationship