An Outstanding Work in the Service of Propaganda: the Case of Mikhail Romm's The Dream - Hi-Story Lessons

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An Outstanding Work in the Service of Propaganda: the Case of Mikhail Romm's The Dream - Hi-Story Lessons

An Outstanding Work in the Service of
Propaganda: the Case of Mikhail Romm's
The Dream
Prof. Andrzej Zawistowski

Can the story of September 1939 be told without mentioning soldiers, weapons or
war? Can aggression be shown as historical justice? Can a propaganda film using
the narrative of Stalinist propaganda, move and enchant an audience today?

Historians wish to believe that they have a monopoly on speaking about the past.
In reality, however, it is popular culture that has the greatest influence on creating
an image of past years. Hundreds, sometimes thousands, of people reach for the
works of historians. At the same time, a picture created by a novel or a film reaches
tens or even hundreds of millions of people. That is why today the most famous of
the 'Righteous Among the Nations' is Oskar Schindler, the protagonist of Steven
Spielberg's film. For many Poles who grew up in the 1970s and 1980s, the Second
World War is associated with television characters from that era: a tank crew
identified by tactical number 102 and an agent codenamed J-23. Such examples are
numerous. Films give history a face. They are evocative, arouse sympathy or antipathy
and remain in the memory as a symbol.

Cinema and history
In 2016 the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation recommended that schools
take part in '100 lectures: the history of home cinema for school pupils'. For this
project, a list of 100 Soviet and Russian feature films recognized as classics was
prepared. Each of these films was enriched with a brief introduction in which people
from contemporary Russian cinema, such as directors, actors and critics, introduced
students to the world of a particular film. They talked about its creators, its history and
the circumstances of its making. On that basis, as the project was advertised, pupils
could learn not only about the history of their native cinema but also about their own
country. The audience was invited to the cinema, and all the material (films and

© Institute of European Network Remembrance and Solidarity, 2021. This article may be downloaded and printed
in an unchanged form (citing its source) only for educational and not-for-profit purposes. https://hi-storylessons.eu 1

lectures) was also posted on a website. Therefore, even away from a big screen,
a teacher could take advantage of the Ministry of Culture's proposal.
Website presenting '100 lectures. History of home cinema for school pupils'

https://www.culture.ru/live/lectures/movies/cinema/100
[accessed 04 May 2021]. Available on culture.ru:

 '100 lectures: the history of home cinema
for school pupils' project website.

These films were selected very carefully. Among them were such classics of the world
cinema as Alexander Nevsky (1938), War and Peace (1965), Repentance (1984), Little
Vera (1988) and Burnt by the Sun (1994). The list also includes films about the Second
World War's great battlefields, for which Soviet cinematography is famous. Among
others, a viewer has access to a digitally reconstructed Liberation (1971–75), which is
over seven-hours long.

The proposed set included the eye-catching film The Dream (1941) directed by Mikhail
Romm, one of the most famous Soviet directors of the mid-20th century. It is by far
the most important of the films shot after the Soviet aggression on Poland
on 17 September 1939.

Totalitarianism on film
The outbreak of the Second World War and the Red Army's victorious march through
the eastern territories of the Second Polish Republic was a dream subject for Soviet

propaganda. That is why Red Army soldiers were also accompanied by specially
created film crews. They included the famous directors Alexander Dovzhenko and
Mikhail Romm. The latter was in Bialystok (where he met the screenwriter Yevgeny
Gabrilovich), Grodno, Brest, Vilnius and elsewhere. At the same time, individual
military units recorded their activities on film.

The result of these works was a series of documentaries, feature and even animated
films. Carefully prepared, they justified the steps taken against Poland, proclaimed
the glory of the Red Army and, finally, showed the joy of incorporating the Polish
Eastern Borderlands region into the Soviet Union. The best-known propaganda film
of this type is a documentary by Alexander Dovzhenko entitled Liberation. The full
title of the picture further specifies its subject: Liberation of Ukrainian and Belarusian
lands from the oppression of Polish lords and unification of brotherly nations into one
family: a historical chronicle. It is a film full of propaganda clichés, stereotypes and
blatant lies. The Second Polish Republic is presented as a backward prison state,
the Polish authorities as cowards and the aggression of 17 September is given
the title 'liberation'.

What can be seen in Dovzhenko's documentary is a universal propaganda code
used by many filmmakers. This was the case, for example, with the plot in Wind from
the East. It was directed by Abram Room and the script's consultant was Wanda
Wasilewska, trusted by Stalin and later the leader of Poland’s incipient communist
rulers. The structure of the film is almost identical to that of the documentary
Liberation. The first part is a story about miserable Ukrainians in the Second Polish
Republic. The second part focuses on a time of war and the complete bankruptcy of
the Polish state. The third part is about historical justice: the arrival of Soviet power. In
the children's cartoon Iwaś, a Belarusian peasant living in Poland and the inhabitants
of his native village are constantly terrorized by the army. However, the proud officers
flee as fast as they can when by the Red Army crosses the borders of the Second
Polish Republic. Tormented and persecuted by the Poles, Iwaś himself finally
begins to breathe freely under the protection of the Soviet authorities.

In terms of artistic value, most anti-Polish Soviet film propaganda was very poor.
Sometimes the films were not allowed to be shown in public for that very reason. This

was the case, for example, with a film entitled The Janusz Family. It is set in a
Belarusian collective farm located on the border with Poland. After 17 September,
its workers celebrated the liberation of their brothers from the power of 'lordly
Poland'. A young man even brings a torn Polish border post to the village. Some of
the propaganda lost its relevance in 1941 when the Germans attacked the Soviet
Union. The former ally now became an enemy and encouraging the memory of
former cooperation was inadvisable. Only one feature film, Mikhail Romm's The
Dream, survived that propagandist-historical turmoil as a recognized work of art.

The Dream
Mikhail Romm is considered to be one of the most prominent artists of Soviet cinema.
A five-time winner of the Stalin Prize, he has also won awards at film festivals in
Venice and Cannes, among others. When he made The Dream, he held the influential
position of artistic director of the Committee for USSR Cinematography.

The co-writer of The Dream was Yevgeny Gabrilovich with whom Romm visited the
Polish Eastern Borderlands occupied by the Red Army. It was during that trip that
the film's concept was born. It involved a plethora of the best Soviet actors of the
time, and interestingly there were many Poles among them. Stanisław Wohl worked
as a stills photographer, whereas director and screenwriter Leon Jeannot was a
co-creator. One of the most talented Polish composers at the time, Henryk Wars
composed the film's musical score. It is quite possible that his involvement in this
anti-Polish production saved the life of his family. His wife and two children were
taken to the Warsaw Ghetto in 1940. However, in the spring of 1941, the three of them
were able to officially leave Warsaw for Lviv as they had Soviet passports. Wars later
managed to leave the Soviet Union with the Anders’ Army and worked in Hollywood
after the war.

The Dream's plot revolved around the life of Anna, a young Ukrainian woman (played
by Romm's wife Yelena Kuzmina). Poverty pushed her to leave her village for the city,
where she worked in a restaurant and was exploited and humiliated. In the film, the
viewer usually sees proud, old-fashioned and unlikeable Poles alongside noble and

tragic Ukrainians and Jews. It must be acknowledged, however, that many characters
are multidimensional.

Persecuted by Polish 'lords', Anna has no prospects in life. She learns from the
communists that there is another world on the eastern border: prosperous, fair and
friendly. She therefore tries to cross to the USSR, but is arrested, beaten and tortured
by the Polish police. Her beloved man is executed for his communist activities. Several
years later, in the autumn of 1939, Anna returns to the city. However, the situation
is different as the Polish lands have now been incorporated into the USSR and
happiness is widespread. One of the Poles even regrets that 'the Soviets came so late'.
Available on culture.ru: https://www.culture.ru/movies/3138/mechta-
Lecture on Mikhail Romm's The Dream [accessed 4 May 2021].

mikhail-romm-1941

 A still from Mikhail Romm's The Dream.

The title 'The Dream' is ambiguous. It is the name of a boarding house where the
film's protagonists, the castaways, reside. On screen, you can also see dreams of a
prosperous and safe life. They are realized by Anna escaping to the USSR and then
returning to the city with the Red Army. Finally, a text appears on the screen about
'the fulfilment of the dreams of many generations of Ukrainians; Ukrainian territories
united within one country'. This is a direct reference to the Soviet aggression against
Poland in September 1939.

Most of the film was shot in a studio, although there are also views of the streets of
Lviv and even, surprisingly, Romanian Chernivtsi. Photos from June 1940 were used
to show the joyful reception of the Red Army's invasion of Poland. At that time, under
the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, Northern Bukovina (including Chernivtsi) was taken
from Romania and annexed to the USSR.

However, The Dream is not an ordinary propaganda film, as were many of the
others made in 1939–41. There are no Polish or Soviet soldiers shown on the screen
or any wartime operations. It is a work addressed to a sophisticated and intelligent
viewer. The place where the action takes place is not explicitly mentioned. The word
'Poland' is never uttered. The viewer is only informed that the events take place before
the 'unification of Ukrainian territories'. The main part of the film's plot takes place in
an anonymous city. All we know is that 'there were five churches, two prisons, four
factories, 39 brothels and 240 shopping centres'. Only an attentive viewer would
recognize the city of Lviv on the screen, notice the uniforms of the Polish soldiers and
policemen and spot the names of cities such as Katowice and Poznan. They would
also probably recognize Polish inscriptions on signboards. The director claimed that
he finished working on it on the morning of 22 June 1941, the day of the German
attack on the USSR. At that time, no decision to screen it in cinemas was made, as
it was not desirable given the established cooperation with the Polish government.
The picture was screened in 1943 after the Soviets broke off diplomatic relations with
General Władysław Sikorski's government. After a few months, the picture was
shelved once again but screened again in 1946–47. Importantly, the film was quite
successful outside the USSR. In 1943, on the initiative of the Soviet ambassador to the
US, it was even shown in the White House with the screening attended by influential
show business personalities known for their pro-Soviet sympathies, including Charlie
Chaplin. Roosevelt then praised it as one of the greatest contemporary films. Was the
subsequent American president's resistance to leaving Lviv within Poland after the
war the result of his admiration for The Dream? We will never know.

In fact, film critics are most often unanimous. From an artistic standpoint the film
directed by Romm is very good. Of note is the acting of Faina Ranevskaya, one of the
most famous Soviet actresses (honoured with the Order of Lenin, among others),
and the music of Henryk Wars is delightful. It seems, therefore, that inclusion of

The Dream in the canon of films presented to contemporary schoolchildren is fully
justified. All that remains is the question of how to discuss this film.

Art and propaganda
The Dream can be regarded as a model example of the problems encountered when
coming across works created during a totalitarian period. Undoubtedly, today we
analyse the past using such historical sources. In this process, their artistic value is of
secondary importance. However, artistic works from that time, including those made
directly for the benefit of totalitarian states, are often ones of artistic excellence.
The Dream is a case in point. It was very well made, dramatic and served to achieve
the sophisticated propaganda goals of the totalitarian Soviet Union. So, should it be
screened today? Of course, just like hundreds of other works of this type. However,
to understand its message, it should be enriched with a commentary explaining all
the nuances associated with what is being shown on the screen. Otherwise, a viewer
worried about the main character's plight might subconsciously absorb all
the propaganda.

Let us return to the project '100 lectures . . .'. It seems that Romm's film was perfectly
suited to an introduction and commentary that could position the film in its historical
context. Such a move was not taken, however, even though the entire project was
supposed to tell Russian schoolchildren about the history of the USSR. In the film's
commentary, we only hear the justified admiration for the acting, artistry of the
director and dramatic nature of the film. When mentioning Romm's journey, which
became the inspiration for The Dream, we hear that he was a correspondent-
chronicler who travelled around Belarus. This comment is made by a young actress
in her late twenties. We do not know whether she conveys a script prepared by the
authors of the project or whether these are her own words. However, we do not hear
a word about the war or the 1939 Soviet annexation, not even expressed in the
language of propaganda. In the commentary we are not even told that the story of
Anna crossing the Polish-Soviet border is unrealistic. After all, in the second half of
the 1930s, the great terror prevailed in the USSR. It cost the lives of millions of people,
while many others were sent to remote Siberia. If Anna had really crossed the border,

she would probably have been accused of espionage. At best, she would have ended
up in the Gulag. This was, in fact, the fate of those who decided to take the illegal
route to the Soviet state.

Finally, the question remains: is this approach to The Dream a planned action or are
the authors simply the victims of propaganda from 80 years ago? The words of the
young actress mentioned above may have the key to this question. She presented the
background to The Dream in such a manner that the entire political context of the
film was bypassed. Historical turbulence that might be dangerous for Russian
memory politics, such as the role of the Red Army in September 1939, could thereby
be completely omitted. It is a pity that the opportunity to tell an interesting story
about what happened in the autumn of 1939 has been missed.

Translation: Mikołaj Sekrecki

Copyediting & Proofreading: Caroline Brooke Johnson

© Institute of European Network Remembrance and Solidarity, 2021. This article may be downloaded and printed
in an unchanged form (citing its source) only for educational and not-for-profit purposes. https://hi-storylessons.eu   8

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