The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming Reviews

• The Laughs are coming, the Laughs are coming !

  
  By AL2APHSIWU24D on 2000-04-13
  I have watched this movie more times than I can count, and each time I find myself laughing until I cry. When a Russian submarine accidentally runs aground of a sleepy little island summer town, the people literally go nuts. Alan Arkin, Carl Reiner, Brian Keith and Jonathan Winters are just a few of the many fine actors who make this movie a laugh a minute. When the bumbling Russians tie up and gag the elderly Post-Mistress "Muriel Everitt" and sit her on top of the refrigerator - you will laugh until your sides ache when her nearly deaf husband eats breakfast 2 feet from her and never realizes she's behind him struggling to get his attention. The sight of Carl Reiner tied up face to face with the hefty town operator and their efforts to hop down a steep flight of steps, (ending, naturally, with the heavy woman falling on top of Carl Reiner and passing out ) is more than I could take with out laughing until I cried. Please rent this movie and have the entire family watch it with you. It's in the genre of "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" and you will enjoy every moment !
  
  

• An Alan Arkin / Theodore Bikel masterpiece

  
  By A5BAE3SEOGND5 on 2003-08-12
  Forget the American characters, the story here is the Russians, led by Theodore Bikel as the Russian sub captain who just wants to get a closer look at the enemy and Alan Arkin as his long-suffering first officer. (As well as John Phillip Law as a young and innocent Russian sailor.) And yes, Arkin's wonderful line "Everybody to get from strit" has long been a family favorite.

  As for the nostalgia for "simpler days" of the sixties, let's remember that this film was made in 1965/66, which means it was written no later than 1964. Deep, dark, scary days. It was released only three years after the murder of President Kennedy, four after the Cuban missile crisis, a year at most after the Tonkin Gulf incident that provided the US with a convenient excuse for committing troops to Vietnam, a short ten years after the Mau Mau massacres in the Congo, another short ten years after the Russians sent tanks into Hungary, and a very short twenty years after World War II.

  There was nothing simple or innocent about those days. The world was tired and aching. Can anyone be blamed for making films that featured a simpler context: a small town where everyone really does know everyone else, where people take care of each other despite their differences, and where a few people from opposite sides of the cold war can work together? "The Russians Are Coming. . ." belongs to a genre of peace films that reached their zenith in the fifties and sixties, climaxing, of course, with "Dr. Strangelove, or How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Bomb." Others in this genre include "The Day the Earth Stood Still," a long-forgotten sci-fi film called "The 37th Day," "Fail Safe," and "The President's Analyst" which, like "The Russians Are Coming. . ." seems dated now but still wears well.

  If it seems quaint and innocent now, bear in mind that all times but our own seem quaint and innocent, simply because we're not involved in them. We don't have to pick up the paper every day and wonder about whether we really should behead the king or put a bomb shelter in our back yard (yes, I had friends who had them). Like beauty, quaintness and innocence are often in the eye of the beholder.

  But above all, the film is driven by Alan Arkin's brilliant performance as a man who understands only too well the full import of the situation in which he's trapped. His growing desperation as the situation becomes at once funnier and more dangerous is set against the insane and inane kneejerk patriotism of both the Americans and the Russians and mark him as the only sane man in the asylum. For all the film's innocent silliness, its message is much darker: how does a sane man survive in a world gone mad? By doing the best he can in his little part of it.
  
  

• sexy performance by Arkin

  
  By on 2000-01-17
  I just saw this movie again last night. I was 11 years old when I first saw it and back then there was something about the Arkin character that got to me. I thought he was soooo sexy, and cool. My friends couldn't figure out why I didn't like the blond Russian sailor, but in my mind, Arkin was much more interesting. I'm glad to say that I still feel that way many years later. I think most people who see this film realize the same thing-current comedies play us for fools and dumb down the content. The fact that this film had no subtitles during the long opening sequence forced us to pay attention to the acting. The decision to forgo the subtitles put us in the same situation as the Islanders-who were these people?, what were they saying?, and what did they want? Beyond the obvious political points of the film, it charmed us both with its subtleties (Arkin's attraction to the wife of the American writer) and its uproarious comedy (Jonathan Winter's "can't we get organized?"). In the end, this film wears extremely well because of its subtleties and great comedy, long after the end of the cold war.
  
  

• Character Is Key In This Low-Key Comedy

  
  By A2OLM3EXS7JHZ8 on 2001-01-22
  I feel really old when I realize that I saw this film in a movie theater when it first came out. At that time, Carl Reiner was well-known from the Sid Caesar Show and the Dick Van Dyke Show, and Alan Arkin had made a big comic splash in "Enter Laughing" and was considered a rising star (somehow he never achieved full stardom and wound up doing odd character roles). Eva Marie Saint was a powerhouse dramatic actress ("On The Waterfront") doing a politically-incorrect simpering housewife role. Paul Ford was known for playing the colonel on the Phil Silvers "Sergeant Bilko" series. John Philip Law was the hunk du jour (and whatever happened to him?)and Andrea Dromm, the other half of the love story, apparently played out her entire movie career in this one film.

  Initially, I was disappointed in the film because I'd read Nathaniel Benchley's novel, "The Off-Islanders," which was a much richer and more subtle story. In time, the movie won me over and I still love watching it. Most of the deliberately "comic" set pieces misfire--many of the routines go on too long (the blustery tension between Paul Ford's obsessed veteran and Brian Keith's put-upon police chief, for example)and Jewison, a good director in other respects, has no sense of comic timing.I do laugh, though, at the silly bit where Reiner and Tessie O'Shea are tied up face to face and attempt to get down a steep flight of stairs. This is funny mostly because of Reiner's own timing. Overall, the film could benefit by a cut of about 10-15 minutes.

  What does keep me coming back is the warm, layered characterization of Alan Arkin's lieutenant and the journey of Carl Reiner's musical comedy writer from terrified schnook to murderous family man to chastened and maturing citizen.Reiner is actually scary when he fires a shotgun through the window of the car Arkin is driving. He's been pushed to the edge by his obnoxious son's goading and by the frightening threats to his family.The scene where he looks into the window of the crashed car and tries to apologize to the even-more-frightened Arkin is delicate and charmingly funny.

  Arkin seems to be in another film most of the time. His character is richly detailed and subtle. He is clearly a better sailor than his stubborn captain (Theodore Bikel), and his repressed fury at the captain's stupidity is a character study in itself. He portrays fear, determination, resourcefulness, tenderness, and exasperation, all without pushing or overacting (the same can't be said for some of the other principals, notably Jonathan Winters, who never succeeds in a scripted part).

  There is gentle satire in the portrayal of the easily duped and insular residents of Gloucester Island (Arkin's attempt to pronounce this name from a map is a gem in itself), though silent movie star Ben Blue wildly overacts. Brian Keith captures the weariness of a small town police chief's life, and his personal best moment comes when he faces the Soviet sub, guns trained on his town, and whips out his citation book to write out a ticket.

  The mandatory romance isn't too annoying since Law and Dromm play it low-key and have some genuine charm. The two children are dreadfully annoying, though the boy is meant to be that way. Reiner's cry to his wife, "Hit him!" as he drives away, will definitely draw a sympathetic laugh.

  The other unfortunate note (aside from the romance)is the Hollywood ending. The sub captain is bluffing the townspeople, thinking his men are being held (they aren't; they've commandeered a speedboat which unaccountably missed seeing the sub sail into the harbor). He threatens to blow up the town in one minute. The townspeople, in a wonderful shot, take aim with their hunting rifles and pistols, terror showing in their eyes. The captain is also terrified. The standoff has real tension, but it's solved by the awful gimmick of having a little boy (who to this point has played no part in the film) dangle from a church tower. Naturally, the Russian sailors scramble from the sub to help and everyone is now consumed with a spirit of detente. It leaves a bad taste, made worse by Saint's suggestion that the townspeople escort the sub safely out of the harbor (no doubt they will all face intense grilling by our government, and possibly jail time).

  However, I always recover from that lapse and the movie leaves me feeling mostly charmed and happy. I find myself reciting "Egermecy--everybody to get from street!" at odd times, and I realize that this film makes me nostalgic for a time when movie comedies did not have to be vicious or filthy or both.
  
  

• Everybody to get from street...and buy this video!

  
  By on 1999-12-22
  I also agree that this has to be one of the best comedies from the 1960's. With Norman Jewison directing, this isn't your average flick, quite polished for a comedy, with excellent editing and cinematography and a strong script adapted from Benchley's novel. Jewison's creation of place captures just the right amount of sleepyness for this small island, and is perfect. Many of the performances are also exceptional, highlighted by Brian Keith as the long-suffering Glouscester Island sheriff; Jonathan Winters, of course, as one of his deputies; Carl Reiner as the vacationing writer; Eva Marie Saint as his long-suffering wife; their son (whose name escapes me, but who almost steals the movie with his antics); and Alan Arkin, as the long-suffering Soviet submarine lieutenant who must somehow get his sub off the reef. But first he must venture on-shore with his men and into the lives of the feared Americans. For its time, this movie must have been quite subversive given how the Russians are portrayed, which is truthful, normal and with affection. These aren't killers, just sailors, and right off the bat we're rooting for them to succeed. Arkin gives one of his best performances ever; it's a pleasure to watch him swing from drama to comedy and back. His rendition of the Reiner character's name as "Whitaker Walt" is a classic and a family favorite. He does it all here, and very movingly. The same can be said for Keith, who also shows great range and appeal. This movie also has one of the best endings of any film. A great comedy with a great message.
  
  
• a light hearted view of the Cold War
  By A1A535W556ROBQ on 2003-11-24
  This movie takes a different approach to the Cold War than did Kubrick's classic Dr. Strangelove, playing on the hysteria in a more conventional way. There is no end to the mirth in this one as the Russians find themselves stranded off Cape Cod, and go in search of help. Soon the whole town is in a panic, with forces mobilized against the red peril. Jewison makes the most of the situation, creating so many amusing scenes anchored by excellent performances. Alan Arkin is the straight man in this farce, which spins wildly out of control, before being brought back down to earth when a boy is found hanging by his finger nails to a roof eave. I imagine Jewison got into some hot water for portraying Russians as human. This movie was made at the height of the Cold War when Americans could only see Russians as the evil menace. The movie has held up well over time thanks in large part to the many fine performances.
  
  
• One of the funniest ever
  By AJYGQV81FSFE2 on 2004-05-19
  I'm old enough that I first saw this classic at the theatre, yep, upwards of 40 years ago. I laughed then, and haven't stopped.

  I have a habit of collecting films that are a must for my library when they come out in different formats. So, while I already had this in VCR, it's now necessary to get it for DVD. It hasn't lost even a little of its humorous effect.

  Where does one start? Alan Arkin was brilliant, deserved an academy award. Carl Reiner was fabulous. Perhaps my favorite of all, even to this day, was Paul Ford. (Oh, and Jonothan Winter's part is incredible.)

  But the DVD is even better than the others. You see, there's an interview with producer/director Norman Jewison that's worth its weight in gold. He goes on about how well the actors worked together. And I remember that the film, even in my much younger days, gave me some hope: Maybe we CAN live together despite Cold War rhetoric and the like. It seems the Russians felt the same way!

  This is a film that should be part of everyone's collection. It's hysterial, satirical, some of the finest acting I've ever seen--and a collection of one liners to make the Marx Bros. jealous. Get it and relish it.
  
  

• A CLASSIC COMEDY FOR ALL AGES!
  By AT5TREIF5CVP6 on 2000-07-17
  I am dumbfounded by Maltins'"overated" comment on this movie because this is a comedy that is STILL beloved by all ages. I remember seeing this at the drivein in my pajamas with the huge bag of homemade popcorn and my 3 brothers stuffed in the back of a 1960 comet. The story of a small town's reaction to a Russian sub landing on their island, by mistake, is pure joy and hillarity. I still love this wonderful movie with the comic GIANTS such as Alan Arkin, Jonathan Winters, Carl Reiner, and many more. Actually filmed on the Northern coast of California, director Norman Jewison is a genius that we sorely miss in today's techno-mass marketed, slasher/crud movies. A MUST-SEE for anyone who appreciates classic comedy!
  
  
• An American Comedy Classic.......
  By A1LPP5ZUZEIMY0 on 1999-11-22
  This day and age, it seems like comedies are made to outdo the last one.....The Russians are coming, The Russians are Coming is a film that will always stand alone in American Film History, not a masterpiece, just a great comedy. Simply put, this movie echoes many of the sentiments that were evident at the time of the movies release. Not everyone was totally "global" in their thinking during The Cold War as today, and many relied on "hear say" for news and events. This movie is all about communication with each other....and not communicating with each other... Every character in this movie is someone we all can relate to sometime in our lives be it good, bad, friend or foe. And our perceptions of Russians at that time was right on point as Alan Arkin proves. We have all had our experiences with "did you hear?" in word of mouth chat in our communities. This movie brings that piece of our lives home, and in the end, makes us reflect on our own fears, perceptions and truths. There are times while viewing this movie that you forget the actors are acting, it almost appears like you are watching a real township's people assemble to tackle the great unknown....which is an overblown crisis from two points of view.....

  "The Russians are Coming, The Russians are Coming" is great picture, no explosions, no special effects, just a fun film to watch with great characters. Enjoy!
  
  

• DVD Image Quality
  By A554SFOPAEPB2 on 2002-10-16
  Obviously, most people like this movie from the reviews and I thought it was very funny as well. I JUST finished watching the DVD and the image quality is OUTSTANDING! It's as good as any NEW release. I've watched quite a few older films, on DVD, that have looked grainey or washed out but this DVD transfer looks beautiful. Highly recommended!!!
  
  
• An Alan Arkin / Theodore Bikel masterpiece
  By A5BAE3SEOGND5 on 2003-08-12
  Forget the American characters, the story here is the Russians, led by Theodore Bikel as the Russian sub captain who just wants to get a closer look at the enemy and Alan Arkin as his long-suffering first officer. (As well as John Phillip Law as a young and innocent Russian sailor.) And yes, Arkin's wonderful line "Everybody to get from strit" has long been a family favorite.

  As for the nostalgia for "simpler days" of the sixties, let's remember that this film was made in 1965/66, which means it was written no later than 1964. Deep, dark, scary days. It was released only three years after the murder of President Kennedy, four after the Cuban missile crisis, a year at most after the Tonkin Gulf incident that provided the US with a convenient excuse for committing troops to Vietnam, a short ten years after the Mau Mau massacres in the Congo, another short ten years after the Russians sent tanks into Hungary, and a very short twenty years after World War II.

  There was nothing simple or innocent about those days. The world was tired and aching. Can anyone be blamed for making films that featured a simpler context: a small town where everyone really does know everyone else, where people take care of each other despite their differences, and where a few people from opposite sides of the cold war can work together? "The Russians Are Coming. . ." belongs to a genre of peace films that reached their zenith in the fifties and sixties, climaxing, of course, with "Dr. Strangelove, or How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Bomb." Others in this genre include "The Day the Earth Stood Still," a long-forgotten sci-fi film called "The 37th Day," "Fail Safe," and "The President's Analyst" which, like "The Russians Are Coming. . ." seems dated now but still wears well.

  If it seems quaint and innocent now, bear in mind that all times but our own seem quaint and innocent, simply because we're not involved in them. We don't have to pick up the paper every day and wonder about whether we really should behead the king or put a bomb shelter in our back yard (yes, I had friends who had them). Like beauty, quaintness and innocence are often in the eye of the beholder.

  But above all, the film is driven by Alan Arkin's brilliant performance as a man who understands only too well the full import of the situation in which he's trapped. His growing desperation as the situation becomes at once funnier and more dangerous is set against the insane and inane kneejerk patriotism of both the Americans and the Russians and mark him as the only sane man in the asylum. For all the film's innocent silliness, its message is much darker: how does a sane man survive in a world gone mad? By doing the best he can in his little part of it.
  
  

• A Former Theater Usher Rates "The Russians Are Coming!"
  By on 2000-07-14
  I was a movie theater usher back in the mid-1960s, so I saw many movies MANY times. For example, I saw "A Patch of Blue" 36 times. "The Russians Are Coming!" was one I probably saw 20+ times, and I thoroughly enjoyed it each time. The cast is first class and the writing is great. Leonard Maltin calls it "incredibly overrated"--yet another reason to pay no attention to "professional critics," or better yet, see their reviews in reverse--the lower the review, the better the film.
  
  
• Intelligent, Funny, but with a timely message
  By A339138XLXW2F1 on 2004-11-27
  I appreciate this movie because it is intelligently written, with a good story line and excellent comedy. But the best part is the message - how misunderstandings between people of different countries can lead to disaster! A good movie and discussion starter for kids age 8 and up.
  
  
• Russian Paratroopers have landed at the Airport!!
  By A1GHUN5HXMHZ89 on 2002-11-25
  First I want to thank MGM for making such a excellent quality DVD. They did a superb job on transferring this movie. The color, picture, and sound quality is outstanding. It was better than watching it the first time at the theater. I am glad I bought it on DVD. That said, this is a great family movie. Those that know what it was like during the Cold War during the 50s-80s may find it even more funny. But anyone that enjoys comedys like "Its a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World", "War Games", and any of the National Lampoon movies will love it. Most the movie was filmed in beautiful Gloucester. I recall my parents couldn't wait to go there after seeing this movie. I don't recall for sure but I believe it is in Massachusetts. Anyway the locations are great. The cast is perfect with Alan Arkin, Carl Reiner, Brian Keith, Jonathan Winters, and many more. The music is a mix of Russian ballads and American medleys that truly add to what is happening on screen. I won't spoil it for you by telling you to much. A Russian Sub gets stuck on a sandbar off the East coast of America while the Captain tries to get a glimpse of the United States. This is during the Cold War when America and Russia where ready to Nuke each other if someone looked cross eyed at each other. The crew goes ashore to get a boat to free the sub and what takes place is sometimes hysterically funny when the townspeople find out. The ending has a great message and was prophetic of future relations.
  
  
• I Think They're Creeping Up on This House!
  By A2BVCT2MPS6LHI on 2005-04-25
  A great Cold War spoof of a classic when a Soviet naval submarine winds up running aground on Gloucester Island, Massachusetts, all because its captain (Theodore Bikel) never saw America and strayed too close. The hilarious events occur on a peaceful Sunday morning when nine of the sailors led by Lt. Rosanov (Alan Arkin) were looking for a powerful motorboat to pull the sub free. This was filmed in 1965 during the height of the Cold War and was actually shown in Moscow not long after its release. Interesting about the movie was that there were no English subtitles when the sub crew were speaking Russian. It would keep the audience guessing what they were saying. One part was when Lt. Rosanov would tell Alexei Kolchin (John Phillip Law), the only two Russians who could speak English, in Russian while at the Whittaker summer home; "...we are just strangers and we won't tell them we're Russians."
  
  To make the film appealing for the two superpowers was that Kolchin was the all-Russian boy, and finding that all-American girl to play the role of Alison Palmer where the two fall in love took a little time. Andrea Dromm - this was her only feature film appearance - fit that role since she was, in real life, a spokesgirl for American Airlines. Veteran actors such as Carl Reiner, Jonathan Winters, Ben Blue and Paul Ford were well represented in the all star comedy film "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" (1963) and had reunited in this film, bringing with them their style of humor as one silly thing happens after another.
  
  Alan Arkin and some of the other actors who played the Russians had to learn to speak Russian prior to filming which was shot at various locations, mainly in Mendocino County on California's north coast and on Nantucket Island, Massachusetts. Weather conditions hampered filming the movie entirely on Nantucket Island, but California's north coast was perfect, not only for its milder climate, but for its New England-style coastal towns.
  
  
  
• The day the cold war almost melted. . .
  By A3NQU1649SH0Q4 on 2000-05-05
  "The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming!" imagines life on a small New England vacation island one unsuspecting day in 1966 when a small Soviet submarine accidentally runs aground. The captain (Alan Arkin) just wants to gather provisions, fix the sub and head back to sea. In spite of his best efforts to stay anonymous, he gets involved with a vacationing family, the writer Walt Whitaker (Carl Reiner), his wife (Eva Marie Saint) and family.

  Never mind the fact that the Cold War is over. For droll humor, slapstick and plain old shtick, "The Russians Are Coming" is a fun night at the movies. I can still get a chuckle out of "Emergency! Everybody to get from street!" Hope you'll like it too.
  
  

• A cold-war comedy of errors
  By A2ZR5CUZ1RA1RQ on 2000-01-02
  This is one of my absolute favorite films - the timing is perfect, the cast is wonderful. Especially watch Alan Arkin and Jonathan Winters, and Theodore Bikel as the submarine captain. A must see, and bring kleenex, because you'll laugh so hard, you'll cry.
  
  
• still very good, but could be better
  By AYRUKBEPKOX0 on 2000-12-26
  I first saw this film when it opened in 1966, and last night i saw it again, a video version from amazon. it's still just as funny as it was the first time. I was lucky enough to live in the no. california town where they filmed it in 1965, and there's a certain charm in returning to my boyhood. Alan arkin steals the film in my opinion. His russian submarine lieutenant is just wonderful, although the rest of the cast (reiner, saint, winters, and the lot) are all wonderful, too.

  The new video version (i bought mine in dec 2000) suffers from two problems, however. 1) When are vdeo makers going to start letterboxing the films? There are several scenes in this film that are ruined, because the non-letterboxed version isn't wide enough for what norman jewison wanted us to see. Shame on you video makers. Is letterboxing that hard? 2) Some idiot apparently decided that subtitles were a good thing. They aren't. The original version of this film had no subtitles, and for a darn good reason: Their lack puts us in the same boat as the islanders, not knowing exactly who these strangers are and what they're saying. And the subtitles absolutely ruin the pierside scene where arkin acts as translator for the police chief (brian keith) and the submarine captain (theodore bikel).

  It's still screamingly funny, but if you letterbox it and get rid of the subtitles, you'll have a five star film, even if that pooh-head leonard maltin disagrees.
  
  

• Am I Missing Something?
  By A21XX6RM8YWR0Y on 2005-10-10
  I love the movie, but was very disappointed with the purchased version. . .I got DVD. . don't know that it matters, but the Russian dubs were NOT there. I know that I have seen this movie with the Russian translated at the bottom of the screen. . .My copy has nothing and therefore you miss out on some of the funniest parts of the movie, particularly near the end in the dialogue between the town sheriff and the submarine commander. I would be interested to know if anyone else has had this problem.
  
  
• This is a charming, thought-provoking, and hilarious gem.
  By on 1998-11-18
  Sorry Leonard Maltin - you're way off base on this one. The movie has an engrossing story with remarkable ensemble acting by some of the best comedians of the era. It's done with charm and superb timing, and has a satisfying blend of comedy, drama, romance, and underplayed cynicism. It's a commentary on the tensions of the era, and on the basic good in human nature. And even more astonishing, it's an excellent family movie - no strong language or "adult situations", yet thoroughly entertaining for almost any age. My 3-year old loved it and so did my 70 year-old mom. (And so did I).
  
  
• One of my favorite movies.
  By on 1999-07-03
  I've seen this film many times. In fact I watch it again last night and I have to say that even at 3:oo am it's still hilarious. Arkin is the man. He's so subtle but watch that face, it tells everything. He was just so enjoyable to watch. This is a really good flick to view with the whole family, because it's clean. They just don't make'em like this anymore. You have to see it at least once. Believe me you won't be disappointed.
  
  
• great, but why the subtitles?
  By on 1999-08-27
  I'm old enought to have seen this when it was first released in theaters. I loved it then ands still do, despite Leonard Maltin's snooty comments. However, the current video (with the photo montage on the box) has subtitles for nearly all the Russian spoken, which the original did not have. I find them very distracting and actually diminish one of the film's points: Helplessness and fear in the absence of understanding. If I can find an older copy, I'd rather own that than this version.
  
  
• Funny yet profound
  By on 1999-11-25
  Not only do I still love this movie, but after first seeing it as a kid during the Cold War, I was so enchanted that I went home and read everything I could find on Russia. From that I developed a love of Dostoevsky, Pasternak and Solzhenitsyn and ... you guessed it ... eventually studied Russian language and literature in college. I still find this a profound picture, albeit hilarious, of the emotional politics of the average American during that time period - something that is difficult to convey nowadays to the post-Cold War generation - and a delightful counterpoint to the deadly seriousness of those politics as shown in other U.S.-versus-Soviets movies, such as "The Hunt for Red October". Interesting thought: I am told that the Soviet government allowed this movie to be shown in the Soviet Union during the 1970's, where it was a big hit. Although I can't confirm this report, and suspect a few bits of dialogue may have been "appropriately" altered if it were shown there, I like to think that maybe it helped keep our countries from pushing that apocolyptic button. We were all laughing too hard at the time!
  
  
• A Cold War parable about tribal conflicts
  By A2DSXA1E02C86D on 2000-12-16
  Back when the Cold War was at its most frosty, along came a comedic farce that allowed us to laugh at the distrust existing between Americans and Russians ... THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING, THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING, released in 1966.

  The captain of a Soviet submarine cruising off New England wants a close-up view of forbidden Amerika, so he heads closer and closer inshore despite the frantic warnings from his crew about a rising sea bottom, and he soon finds himself hard aground on an off-shore island. Early the next morning, he orders a landing party ashore under the command of his long-suffering First Officer, Lt. Rozanov, played by Alan Arkin in his first big screen appearance. Their mission, to find a motorboat powerful enough to drag the sub off the shoal. After stealing a car from an isolated beach house, they head off to the island's population center, such as it is, to look for their tow.

  Of course, the submariners' quest must be accomplished on the sly since they don't want to be captured and imprisoned as spies. Observed by an early rising old biddy, she manages to get off an agitated report to an incredulous Chief of Police before the phone line is cut. This one warning, overheard by a gossipy switchboard operator, results in a torrent of escalating rumors and frantic running-about as the hastily armed locals become convinced that their island is the beachhead of a full scale Russian invasion of America. As the hysteria mounts, the Russians scurry from one hiding place to the next in an effort to reach the island's main boat anchorage undetected.

  The cast is superb. Brian Keith plays the level-headed and exasperated Chief of Police, who is fully occupied keeping the local, trigger-happy citizenry under control. Jonathan Winters is his hyperexcitable deputy. Carl Reiner is the head of the family from whom the sailors initially commandeered the car. The film was nominated for Best Picture and Best Actor (Arkin) Oscars, and won two Golden Globes: Best Film (Musical/Comedy) and Best Actor (Musical/Comedy). Arkin won the latter.

  The final confrontation between the Soviet vessel, its foolish captain, played by Theodore Bikel, and the aroused islanders is a lesson on brinkmanship that deserves to be studied by the world at large. It's also serves as the pièce-de-résistance ending of the funniest movie I've seen ... ever.
  
  

• Da! Da! Da!
  By A2I4XOMPT3OQHL on 2001-01-26
  I've loved this movie since it came out in 1966. I watch it every couple of months, and it never ceases to make me feel better...Brilliant performances by Alan Arkin, Brian Kieth, Paul Ford, Carl Reiner and Jonathan Winters! The subplot of hunky russian sailor-local girl romance is a bit of a yawn, but that's the only negative thing I can find to say about it. Special mention goes to the FINE performance of the Northern California coast in the role of Gloucester Island.
  
  
• One of the best family comedies of the 1960s!
  By A2EWTU60OB5O52 on 2002-11-07
  This movie struck my heart and mind when I was a child, and it still does. How wonderful it was during the Cold War to be reminded that we're all just people, who need the same basic things in life. We are not all politicians. You can learn a lot from watching this film, and laugh yourselves silly at the same time.
  
  
• Cold War Comedy Classic
  By A1PGY9SOWY76CV on 2005-07-29
  Great comedy with a wonderful messege!! Perhaps those who do not know much about the Cold War might require a bit of information to better appreciate the context of the humor and story, but it is not necessary. Besides, the "extra" on the DVD with Director Norman Jewison discussing the film will help alot BUT -- see it afterwoods (then watch the movie again, if you like) because it has many clips from the movie and some "secrets" are revealed -- it presumes you already watched the movie, so wait till after you see it to check this interesting piece out. No matter what, the movie is still a hoot, and fun for all. BTW, I recently watched the movie with a Russian (who enjoyed it immensely) and he confirmed that the Russian characters all truly spoke the language, although Alan Arkin was clealy not a native speaker. On the other hand, he believed Theodore Bikel had a great accent, so he wasn't sure about him, while most of the others appeared to be "real" Russians. Have fun with this one!!
  
  
• The Russians Are Coming
  By A1ARWCQLMFIXML on 2005-09-17
  This movie is very entertaining with a good lesson in it. It was made at a time when Russia and the USA were in a real cold war.
  The movie portrays the paranoia of Americans towards Russians in a comical way. The characters were interesting and funny. The ending was moving and had a lesson to all people. It's a Must See!
  
  
• Satire, slapstick, suspense evenly build to poignant climax.
  By A2JYIDH7JIG48H on 2005-10-13
  The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming is one of the best comedies of the 1960s, in my opinion. They tried for the frantic atmosphere that made It's A Mad Mad Mad Mad World work, with less big stars but a measured bit of drama and message evenly blended with the satire and slapstick.
  
  During the height of the cold war, the captain of a USSR submarine (Theodore Bikel, who played the artist in A Dog Of Flanders), wants a closer look at America, and accidently grounds his sub on the shore of a northeastern island. Alan Arkin (The In-Laws) is the Russian officer he sends ashore with a small party to find a boat suitable to free the sub. Everyone they come in contact with panics and spreads rumors of a Soviet invasion, starting with Carl Reiner and Eva Marie Saint, renting a beach house.
  
  The cast is full of great comedians and character actors who propogate panic as Arkin and his men cross the island, including, among others: Ben Blue as the town drunk assigned to ride his horse out to the shacks beyond the dump to alert the few citizens who live there; Paul Ford (The Music Man) as a pompous veteran; Jonathan Winters as an oversized Barney Fife; and Brian Keith, who plays the Sheriff straight which cleverly sets up a more dramatic climax.
  
  Keith's standoff with Bikel at the end makes the whole movie worthwile for its poignancy as well as comedy.
  
  
• Hilarious!
  By A1CQYL0ARXC044 on 2006-03-24
  I first saw the Russians Are Coming as a kid when it first came out. This movie still holds up with the best of them. I laughed at least as much as an adult as I did as a child - probably more. While many movies, television programs and recordings seem jaded when viewed years later, this movie has retained it's humor with fine acting, great writing and of course great directing. If you like to laugh, you will thoroughly enjoy this movie.
  
  

• It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
• The Great Race
• Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines
• The Mouse That Roared
• A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum