East Side Story (1997)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Dana Ranga

Writers:

Andrew Horn (writer)
Dana Ranga (writer)

Release Date:

25 June 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary | Music

Tagline:

All Singing! All Dancing! All Marxist Musicals!

Plot:

A look at Communist musicals that strove to be ideologically correct - and entertaining, besides.

Plot Keywords:

Film Making | Filmmaking | Communism

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Margarita Andrushkovich	...	Herself (as Margarita Andruschkovitsch)
Chris Doerk	...	Herself
Erich Gusko	...	Himself
Helmut Hanke	...	Himself
Barbara Harnisch	...	Party Girl
Brit Krüger	...	Party Girl
Andrea Schmidt	...	Party Girl
Frank Schöbel	...	Himself
Karin Schröder	...	Herself
Maya Turovskaya	...	Herself (film historian)
Brigitte Ulbrich	...	Herself
Hans-Joachim Wallstein	...	Himself

Runtime:

75 min | USA:78 min

Country:

France | Germany

Language:

German | Russian | Polish | Romanian | Bulgarian | Czech

Color:

Black and White | Color

Certification:

Spain:T

Filming Locations:

DEFA Studio für Dokfilm, Babelsberg, Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany

Company:

Anda Film

Quotes:

Narrator: These movies offered escape, hope and hit songs. They were part of another Socialist mythology, one that offered a positive view: Happiness and the good life.

Movie Connections:

Features Nu vreau sa ma însor (1960)

The Hills Are Alive - With the Sound of Communists

When I went to see this documentary on Communist bloc musicals, I was expecting something totally demented, along the lines of a Communist "Cop Rock." Some scenes did deliver, including a rousing clip from a Soviet film called "Tractor Drivers."

You'd think that moviemakers given the task of making ideologically correct musicals that sing, dance and espouse the Party line face insurmountable odds. And yet, one of the surprises of "East Side Story" is that some of the films presented actually looked promising. One was a mid-1950s East German effort called "My Wife Wants to Sing," in which, as the title implies, an unhappy hausfrau seeks to launch a singing career over the objections of her traditionally-minded husband.

Another genuinely interesting-looking movie, also from East Germany, was called "Midnight Revue." In this film-within-a-film, the producers spoof their own creative plight with the story of a group of filmmakers under Party orders to make a musical. (The on-screen filmmakers themselves get to do a musical number about avoiding "too hot" subjects very reminiscent in tone of the 1957 movie "Silk Stockings.")

The documentary is marred by somewhat insipid narration, but it's still a lot of fun to watch. (Look for the closing dedication to the person who made it all possible.)