Made during the Cold War, this Castle Films travelogue portrays Russia and the Soviet Union as a nation in search of a better future. The film makes no bones about its pro-West viewpoint — explaining the Soviet system as one in which atheism is the national religion, where there are food shortages (unless one is “privileged’), shoddy construction, and a totalitarian regime in place. While this narration may seem hackneyed today, in many ways it spoke the truth.

Ukraine is shown at the 3:45 mark, with Odessa seen at the 4:30 mark and Yalta seen at 5:15. (During a sequence at the Black Sea beach, the narrator notes something like, “The starchy diet makes the middle aged look terrible while the young look great!”) Vineyards are seen at the 6 minute mark, being worked by Soviets. Production graphs for various farms are shown. Some Georgians are seen at the 7 minute mark. Moscow is seen at the 7:20 mark, including Red Square and Moscow University as well as Lenin’s Tomb.

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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD and 2k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com