Aelita – Queen of Mars!

I finally got around to watching Aelita last night and uh, wow, every stereotype of Russian propaganda film-making you ever imagined is pretty much true.  It predates Metropolis by a couple years and you can see the possible influence on Lang.

I went into Aelita thinking “Bolsheviks in Space!” but actually, the science fiction is a back story to the main plot which follows the intertwined lives of a small group of people in post-War Russia.  It attacks the “usual suspects” of Soviet propaganda from the era such as:  classism, sloth, greed, corruption and so forth while extolling the same virtues, principles and elements of the great plan.  They aren’t quite the fever pitch you see during the Cold War, and many seem charmingly naive and optimistic in afterthought.  All of that may sound like a criticism, but I assure it’s not.  I really enjoyed the movie and the insight into the cinema of the era.

Without spoiling too much, there is a “worker’s uprising” on Mars and there is a surprise ending worthy of Twin Peaks. 🙂