Indiana Jones movie criticized by Russian communists
Steve Hammons
June 02, 2008
Some communists in Russia are reportedly troubled by the new movie "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull."
They say the portrayal of Soviet agents and scientists pursuing knowledge about UFOs and psychic warfare in 1957 is unfair and derogatory, according to published international news reports.
Communists based in St. Petersburg have called the film an anti-Russian propaganda piece and called for a boycott of the movie.
In an article updated June 2, Australia's Sky News quoted Sergei Malinkovich, the chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Organization of St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region as saying, "'If (Spielberg) doesn't want his name to be used to scare off children in Russia he should re-shoot the film. If he chooses not to, we will continue to fight against this film."
Another communist spokesman said, "Let there be some suspicion first between Jones and the communists but then they would start working together towards solving whatever problems there are, like fighting aggressive extraterrestrials or tackling natural disasters," Sky News reported.
According to a May 26 article in the Moscow Times," Veronika Klinovitskaya, a spokeswoman for the communists of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region, said "We are really outraged by this film, which has nothing to do with reality."
In the article, Moscow Times reporter Anna Malpas wrote, "The communist group, which is not affiliated with the official Communist Party, posted a statement on its web site Thursday calling the film 'a belch of the Cold War' and a 'vile lampoon.'"
Voice of America News reported in a May 24 article, "The film opened in Russia Thursday in more than 800 theaters, but members of the Communist Party in St. Petersburg charge its portrayal of the Soviets unfairly distorts their role in history.
VOA news reported that, "Communist Party member Andrei Gindos called [Harrison] Ford and his co-star, actress Cate Blanchett, 'running dogs of the CIA.' He also said they should be barred from entering Russia."
A May 23 Reuters article carried a quote from Viktor Perov, a Communist Party member in St. Petersburg. "What galls is how together with America we defeated Hitler, and how we sympathized when Bin Laden hit them. But they go ahead and scare kids with communists. These people have no shame," Perov is quoted as saying.
COLD WAR COMMIE SCARE
But are the characterizations of Soviet operatives in the film really so demeaning in the context of other aspects of the movie?
Two FBI agents in the movie are portrayed as overbearing, intimidating and somewhat paranoid commie-fighters.
The FBI men question Indiana Jones' patriotism, even as they learn he performed work for the World War II-era intelligence and special operations group the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the forerunner of the CIA.
In the fight against the Nazis, of course, the American and the Russian people fought together as tenuous allies.
These FBI agents and their abusive manner as government enforcers of politically correct attitudes of the 1950s are combined with scenes of U.S. atomic weapons testing in which Indie is almost obliterated.
One of Indie's university colleagues laments the climate of the '50s in the U.S. when Americans were told that communists were behind every tree and bush, and among average patriotic Americans.
Even Indiana himself was suspect in the eyes of those overzealous FBI agents, despite the fact that a U.S. general tells them that Indie won many commendations for his WWII OSS activities.
The movie reflects a careful critical eye about many aspects of the Cold War, including excesses on the U.S. side.
In fact, the film may also shed light on the same kinds of political and fear-mongering tactics and strategies going on around us now.
In the movie, Indie and his associates are pulled into a search for knowledge about psychic warfare and extrasensory perception (ESP) as well as extraterrestrial visitation to Earth, including the 1947 Roswell incident.
In this, Jones' efforts are a race of sorts with female Soviet scientist Dr. Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett).
Although Spalko and her associates are portrayed as tough and ruthless, most mature adults realize that intelligence and special operations personnel from various countries are by nature tough and ruthless.
The current real-life stories of torture and brutality we read about remind us that these troubling human behaviors are sometimes part of the military and intelligence operations of many nations and groups.
And although Spalko seems to want to pursue knowledge about psychic phenomena and UFOs as part of her own quest for power and control, we certainly realize that power and control, too, are used by many governments ... not only against adversaries, but sometimes even against their own people.
In addition, if we look closely, we might see that Spalko sometimes seems sincerely interested in knowledge about these unusual topics for her own understanding. Could it be that her better spiritual side is emerging or being revealed?
RUSSIANS AND AMERICANS PURSUE SAME GOALS
The competition between the U.S. and Soviet Union is something that can be viewed as both destructive and dangerous as well as having certain benefits.
The Soviet successes in the "space race" helped push the U.S. into accelerated development of advanced technology and programs.
Directly associated with the latest Indiana Jones movie, Soviet research into ESP prompted U.S. officials to begin counterintelligence projects involving psychic phenomena and "remote viewing."
The American programs during the 1970s, '80s and '90s are generally referred to as Project STAR GATE, though the efforts had various different code names over the years.
This rivalry has led to surprising and potentially very helpful knowledge about human capabilities to use ESP and "anomalous cognition."
Efforts of both nations in understanding the UFO phenomena have also been secret and probably parallel in many ways too. Creating diplomatic relations and alliances with ET races and obtaining an advantage in terms of technology and knowledge would be natural goals of military and intelligence services of both countries.
Today, half a decade after the Cold War era of the '50s, the 21st Century is also a time of change, dangers and discovery about some of the same elements that Indiana Jones faces.
What may be different now is that through emerging information about human ESP, extraterrestrial and/or extra-dimensional visitation to Earth as well as other important issues of the day, the people of Russia, the United States and the rest of the international community are looking at common challenges and goals.
The human race now faces problems like the deterioration of our natural resources, climate change and the poisoning of our lands, rivers, lakes and oceans. Poverty, disease, hunger, war, injustice and suffering are challenges that the human species is trying to deal with.
Indie and Dr. Spalko sought new knowledge and understanding about the potential of human consciousness and what extraterrestrial visitation to Earth might mean.
Now, the rest of us are also gaining comprehension about our own extrasensory internal connection to larger metaphysical intelligence and understanding.
We are getting more prepared to face surprising facts about UFOs and extraterrestrials.
In this, the new Indiana Jones movie creates a common bond among moviegoers, young and old, of many philosophical perspectives.
NOTE TO READERS: Those who enjoyed this article may also want to read the piece "Indiana Jones meets ESP and UFOs in new movie." For more information and resources about these and other topics, please visit the Joint Recon Study Group and have a look around.
They say the portrayal of Soviet agents and scientists pursuing knowledge about UFOs and psychic warfare in 1957 is unfair and derogatory, according to published international news reports.
Communists based in St. Petersburg have called the film an anti-Russian propaganda piece and called for a boycott of the movie.
In an article updated June 2, Australia's Sky News quoted Sergei Malinkovich, the chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Organization of St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region as saying, "'If (Spielberg) doesn't want his name to be used to scare off children in Russia he should re-shoot the film. If he chooses not to, we will continue to fight against this film."
Another communist spokesman said, "Let there be some suspicion first between Jones and the communists but then they would start working together towards solving whatever problems there are, like fighting aggressive extraterrestrials or tackling natural disasters," Sky News reported.
According to a May 26 article in the Moscow Times," Veronika Klinovitskaya, a spokeswoman for the communists of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region, said "We are really outraged by this film, which has nothing to do with reality."
In the article, Moscow Times reporter Anna Malpas wrote, "The communist group, which is not affiliated with the official Communist Party, posted a statement on its web site Thursday calling the film 'a belch of the Cold War' and a 'vile lampoon.'"
Voice of America News reported in a May 24 article, "The film opened in Russia Thursday in more than 800 theaters, but members of the Communist Party in St. Petersburg charge its portrayal of the Soviets unfairly distorts their role in history.
VOA news reported that, "Communist Party member Andrei Gindos called [Harrison] Ford and his co-star, actress Cate Blanchett, 'running dogs of the CIA.' He also said they should be barred from entering Russia."
A May 23 Reuters article carried a quote from Viktor Perov, a Communist Party member in St. Petersburg. "What galls is how together with America we defeated Hitler, and how we sympathized when Bin Laden hit them. But they go ahead and scare kids with communists. These people have no shame," Perov is quoted as saying.
COLD WAR COMMIE SCARE
But are the characterizations of Soviet operatives in the film really so demeaning in the context of other aspects of the movie?
Two FBI agents in the movie are portrayed as overbearing, intimidating and somewhat paranoid commie-fighters.
The FBI men question Indiana Jones' patriotism, even as they learn he performed work for the World War II-era intelligence and special operations group the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the forerunner of the CIA.
In the fight against the Nazis, of course, the American and the Russian people fought together as tenuous allies.
These FBI agents and their abusive manner as government enforcers of politically correct attitudes of the 1950s are combined with scenes of U.S. atomic weapons testing in which Indie is almost obliterated.
One of Indie's university colleagues laments the climate of the '50s in the U.S. when Americans were told that communists were behind every tree and bush, and among average patriotic Americans.
Even Indiana himself was suspect in the eyes of those overzealous FBI agents, despite the fact that a U.S. general tells them that Indie won many commendations for his WWII OSS activities.
The movie reflects a careful critical eye about many aspects of the Cold War, including excesses on the U.S. side.
In fact, the film may also shed light on the same kinds of political and fear-mongering tactics and strategies going on around us now.
In the movie, Indie and his associates are pulled into a search for knowledge about psychic warfare and extrasensory perception (ESP) as well as extraterrestrial visitation to Earth, including the 1947 Roswell incident.
In this, Jones' efforts are a race of sorts with female Soviet scientist Dr. Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett).
Although Spalko and her associates are portrayed as tough and ruthless, most mature adults realize that intelligence and special operations personnel from various countries are by nature tough and ruthless.
The current real-life stories of torture and brutality we read about remind us that these troubling human behaviors are sometimes part of the military and intelligence operations of many nations and groups.
And although Spalko seems to want to pursue knowledge about psychic phenomena and UFOs as part of her own quest for power and control, we certainly realize that power and control, too, are used by many governments ... not only against adversaries, but sometimes even against their own people.
In addition, if we look closely, we might see that Spalko sometimes seems sincerely interested in knowledge about these unusual topics for her own understanding. Could it be that her better spiritual side is emerging or being revealed?
RUSSIANS AND AMERICANS PURSUE SAME GOALS
The competition between the U.S. and Soviet Union is something that can be viewed as both destructive and dangerous as well as having certain benefits.
The Soviet successes in the "space race" helped push the U.S. into accelerated development of advanced technology and programs.
Directly associated with the latest Indiana Jones movie, Soviet research into ESP prompted U.S. officials to begin counterintelligence projects involving psychic phenomena and "remote viewing."
The American programs during the 1970s, '80s and '90s are generally referred to as Project STAR GATE, though the efforts had various different code names over the years.
This rivalry has led to surprising and potentially very helpful knowledge about human capabilities to use ESP and "anomalous cognition."
Efforts of both nations in understanding the UFO phenomena have also been secret and probably parallel in many ways too. Creating diplomatic relations and alliances with ET races and obtaining an advantage in terms of technology and knowledge would be natural goals of military and intelligence services of both countries.
Today, half a decade after the Cold War era of the '50s, the 21st Century is also a time of change, dangers and discovery about some of the same elements that Indiana Jones faces.
What may be different now is that through emerging information about human ESP, extraterrestrial and/or extra-dimensional visitation to Earth as well as other important issues of the day, the people of Russia, the United States and the rest of the international community are looking at common challenges and goals.
The human race now faces problems like the deterioration of our natural resources, climate change and the poisoning of our lands, rivers, lakes and oceans. Poverty, disease, hunger, war, injustice and suffering are challenges that the human species is trying to deal with.
Indie and Dr. Spalko sought new knowledge and understanding about the potential of human consciousness and what extraterrestrial visitation to Earth might mean.
Now, the rest of us are also gaining comprehension about our own extrasensory internal connection to larger metaphysical intelligence and understanding.
We are getting more prepared to face surprising facts about UFOs and extraterrestrials.
In this, the new Indiana Jones movie creates a common bond among moviegoers, young and old, of many philosophical perspectives.
NOTE TO READERS: Those who enjoyed this article may also want to read the piece "Indiana Jones meets ESP and UFOs in new movie." For more information and resources about these and other topics, please visit the Joint Recon Study Group and have a look around.
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