Class Year
2026
Document Type
Article
Abstract
The Stalinist era of the Soviet Union (1924-1956) is marked by its incredible pace of forced industrialization, extreme cultural repression, and an atmosphere of immense fear and paranoia, resulting in the Great Terror. Among the various mechanisms to enforce the state program, cinema offers a unique insight into specific state ideologies at key points in Stalin’s regime. By examining the three key phases of the Stalinist era consisting of his initial years, the Second World War, and the years of High Stalinism, it is possible to trace notable shifts in the Soviet authority’s approach to cinema as a propagandistically advantageous resource. The developing industrial conditions of the film industry, experimentation in plot organization, and use of quintessential stylistic techniques contributed to the varying degrees of success within Stalinist cinema across the three main phases of the regime. The robust nature of the state’s control over the film industry proved to both aid in the development of and restrict the ultimate success of a Soviet cinematic apparatus.
Recommended Citation
Bolenbaugh, Anne E.
(2026)
"Soviet Sympathies On-Screen: Cinema as a Cultural Apparatus in the Stalinist Era,"
The Gettysburg Historical Journal: Vol. 25, Article 6.
Available at:
https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/ghj/vol25/iss1/6