At RTD, the premiere of Konstantin Rozhkov's documentary film "Hollywood: The Factory of Propaganda." The film tells how over the decades - in accordance with the requests of the US authorities - the image of Soviet man and the USSR as a whole, broadcast by American filmmakers, has changed.

The expert point of view in an interview for the film was expressed by film critic Kirill Razlogov, directors Emir Kusturitsa and Andrei Konchalovsky. Also taking part in the filming of the picture was George Samuel, a senior fellow at the Global Policy Institute, professor of history Peter Kuznik, professor of law Daniel Kovalik and journalist Pavel Petrov.

According to some experts, Hollywood filmmakers for many years followed the authorities' request for ideologically verified tapes and “right” heroes. It is not surprising that by the way the trends in the popular films of the "dream factory" change, one can easily trace the change in the political agenda.

Now friend, now enemy, now so

In 1942, the Roosevelt administration formed a military information office that was responsible for propaganda. It was from there that American filmmakers received a request for films broadcasting a certain - acceptable to the authorities - image of the USSR. At that time, the Soviet Union was supposed to look like a friend in need. The tapes about this "friend" pursued a specific goal: to convince American citizens to go to Europe and take part in the Second World War.

Cinema for such a task was not chosen by chance. “The easiest way to convey propaganda to the viewer is through entertainment. That is, through feature films, ”recalls journalist Pavel Petrov the words of Elmer Davis, head of the US Military Information Office.

So in 1943, Michael Curtitz’s “Mission to Moscow” tape was released, later nominated for an Oscar for the artist’s best work. According to the plot of the picture, the American ambassador arrives in the Union, communicates with his friendly, educated residents, is amazed at the technical wonders invented by them. But most importantly, the diplomat meets with Stalin and sees that the Secretary General is not a tyrant, but the most peaceful and just ruler.

Other films of a pro-Soviet orientation came out at that time. Among them are the notorious “North Star” and “Days of Glory”. In the latter, Gregory Peck made his debut as a partisan of Vladimir (in the future - one of the icons of Hollywood). 

  • © Shot from the film "Days of Glory" (1944)

However, after the war the situation changed. The US authorities were concerned about the growing interest in communist ideology in society and the increasing influence of the US Communist Party, which at that time had already established itself as a civil rights activist.

In 1946, it received permanent status, the temporary Commission established in 1934 to investigate anti-American activities. In 1947, she began the persecution of filmmakers and formed a “black list” of people who, due to political preferences, were not allowed to enter the cinema. Industry workers sympathizing with the ideas of communism were removed from production.

I had to rewrite the history of cinema, which so successfully coped with the tasks of pro-Soviet propaganda. So, they remounted the aforementioned film "North Star" to please the market. All appeals “comrade” were removed from the picture, but the voiceover text was added to the video sequence, in which the Nazis were compared with the Soviet military suppressing the uprising in Hungary. The new version of the film was called "Armed attack."

The 1939 film “Ninochka” was released for re-rental, in which Soviet emissaries were exposed in an extremely unsightly light. The main character, a diplomat from Moscow, looked much more adequate than her compatriots. That is why at the end of the picture she will prefer the high ideals of her homeland to live with an American lover in a capitalist society. By the way, the role of Ninochka was played by Greta Garbo - a star of the first magnitude.

When the USA again headed for cooperation with the USSR in the 1960s and 1970s, the sharply negative image of Soviet man disappeared from the screens. But this did not last long. In the 1980s, Ronald Reagan came to power, and the old rhetoric returned. An example of a typical "evil Russian" in American cinema of those years was Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) - an opponent of Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) from the tape "Rocky 4".

  • © RTD

Money is the main factor that allows the Department of State and the Pentagon to control Hollywood, explains George Samueli, a senior fellow at the Global Policy Institute in London. However, the professor of law Daniel Kowalik emphasizes that sometimes filmmakers pay the price of freedom simply for the help of the military: if military equipment is required for filming, then the agency that provided it will necessarily track not only the operation of the aircraft, but also the content of the film.

According to Emir Kusturica, "Hollywood is tightly controlled on the one hand by business, and on the other - by ideology." In this case, often the filmmakers themselves believe in a distorted reality, which is then recreated for the audience.

Andrei Konchalovsky, who had already left the USSR back in 1980 to make films in Hollywood, claims that advertisers are the most successful at the "dream factory" - "people who have talent and who can dryly put their talent on the demands of the market."

Konchalovsky is also certain: the US Department of Defense is censoring Hollywood films.

“The Pentagon approves all films, reads all films in which there are military personnel or CIA employees,” the director notes.

Under the strict supervision of the authorities, both military themes and comedies are released. And although the same office of military information no longer exists, Hollywood continues to follow the line of the government. Professor of History Peter Kuznik says that in Hollywood, military censorship was always feared - and therefore introduced strict self-censorship.

“Hollywood is an instrument of world propaganda. Perhaps the most outstanding tool that has ever existed, ”says Daniel Kovalik.

More details are in the movie "Hollywood: Factory of Propaganda" on RTD.