"Two Before Zero" is more of a polemical statement rather than a drama, although it is not that far away from an episode of "The Twilight Zone" or an odd NET (the old PBS) drama from the 1960's ('ala "NET Playhouse). It is a dialogue between two characters illustrated by newsreel footage. Basil Rathbone plays what has been called an "inquisitor-like" charcter, and Mary Murphy is his audience. It is a warning against what happens when an ideology, in this case Marxism, is forced on individuals and the death and destruction that can occur. Hopefully, those who take the anti-Red Scare position can see that what went on in the Soviet Union and other places was not totally benevolent and lied about by its enemies in the west. (The film contains graphic footage of people who were killed by fanatical Marxists.) Although the film is dated (it came out in 1962) , I think we can still learn some of its lessons even today. Basil Rathbone, incidentally, gave a good performance in one of his last roles. This film doesn't deserve to be as obscure as it is.
Review of Two Before Zero
