The Russians Are Coming The Russians Are Coming (1966): Reconsidering Hollywood’s Cold War “Turn” of the 1960s

This article challenges the view that one of America’s most important sources of entertainment and persuasion, Hollywood, transformed its coverage of the Cold War during the 1960s. In particular, it questions whether American cinema really altered its attitude towards Soviet communism. It does this principally via an in-depth analysis of The Russians Are Coming The Russians Are Coming, the second highest-grossing American Cold War movie of the 1960s and the most Soviet-friendly one. The origin, production, content and reception of the film are looked at in detail, and the film placed fully within its cinematic, cultural, political and diplomatic context.