Week 7 Homework: Communist

Communist, a USSR film that came out in 1960, is about a communist man named Gubanov and how he worked to help Zagora, a small russian town. The movie takes place during the Russian Revolution and Lenin's rule. Lenin was trying to build power plants all over Russia. One of the most important of these was Zagora. Gubanov was key in helping Lenin's cause. He was portrayed as hero, who ending up sacrificing his life trying to help the starving people of Zagora. Communist is wonderful example of propaganda in Russian cinema because the way it heroically portrayed the main character who was to be a communist. 

The movie has a very clear message for the audience about communism: communism is good. However, if you examine the storyline of the film closely, it is obvious that there is more to that there are trying to say then it's just being good. It involves sacrifice, guts, and a stick-to-it nature. The movie suggests, through the story, that being a communist is best because the main character gets the girl, and the praise and the glory for his sacrifices. (He also gets murdered, but he really accomplished so much, and he died a hero's death, so that doesn't really matter, right? It the sacrifice that counts.:) Communism's core belief was much more about the people as a whole, then the individual. Before Gubanov died he helped the people as a whole by getting them nails when there was a shortage, helping manage the construction of the power plant, and by finding and bringing a train full of grain to the starving village of Zagora. Besides that, he saved the women he loved from being beaten by her husband. He sure was a hero, wasn't he? 

Gubanov, the hero of Zagora! The communist! 

By casting a hero's light on the communist in the movie, it makes communism seem appealing. But the things is the this, it a political view. Only a political view. Being a communist doesn't make you a hero, just like being a democrat, republican or independent doesn't make you a evil. Having Communism as a political belief, and belonging to the Communist Party may sculpt and shape your world view, but that isn't going to automatically make you hero. This is why the film Communist is propaganda. Because it leads the audience to the conclusion that if you were a communist, you would be a hero. So, what is communism's political beliefs? 

Spoiler alert...he dies....like every other Russian movie.... :)

The Communist Party was a political party that ruled Russia from the early 1900's to the 1990's. The core beliefs of this political view were based off of Marxism, and basically it is an extreme form of Socialism. However, there are a few stark differences between Communism and Socialism. For example, Communism works toward super-abundance whereas socialism strives to distribute the wealth. Another key difference is religion, while Socialism promotes secularism, Communism renounces all religion. Besides that, the political system is very different. In a Communist country, all decisions are made by a group of people behind closed doors. In the majority of Socialist countries, there is a participatory democracy. However, when it comes to the way society is structured, Communism takes what Socialism would do, and makes it slightly more extreme. While Socialism diminishes class distinctions, Communism strives to completely abolishes them. These are just a few of the differences between Communism and Socialism. 

Communist came out in 1960 and is a USSR film about a man named Gubanov who was a communist. As the protagonist of the film, he is portrayed as a hero. The movie Communist a spot-on example of Russian propaganda in cinema because of the what it tells the audience think about being a communist: how heroic you can be as a communist. However, aside from this, Communist is an intriguing Russian story of perseverance, love, and sacrifice.

All aboard the Communist train!