This is a movie about idealistic fools. It starts in the mid 1910's and follows the lives of John Reed, a communist journalist and his wife Louise Bryant. They were a part of a radical social circle in New York that included Eugene O'Neil. Reed was a passionate spokesman for the 'revolutionary' union elements.
Happiness abounds when the Russian Revolution breaks out. Reed becomes a delegate from the Communist Party. He went to Moscow to gain recoginition from the Comintern. While there he discovered that he couldn't communicate with his wife. He then discovered that he couldn't get out. His final straw is when he discovered that his party superior rewrote some of his copy. He dies shortly after. The film tells us that he's the only American buried in Red Square.
This movie was kinetic and interesting. That's about the only good thing I can say about it. Warren Beatty decided to make this movie at the height of the Cold War. He made a valentine to Communism after he should have known of the accompanying horrors. Karma did bite back, though. According to Wikipedia:
During filming, Beatty lectured his Russian extras on the capitalist exploitation of labour, attempting to inspire them. According to the magazine Total Film in 2004, this was the 4th "dumbest decision in movie history": the extras duly went on strike, demanding higher wages.
I can't really recommend this movie. It was good but I felt like I needed a shower after watching it.
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