Mickey Almon is a sports star turned reporter covering the athletics in Moscow. Framed by the KGB and forced to confess that he was spying for America, he is sentenced to detention in a Gulag, a barbaric prison camp in the wilds of Siberia. Unable to prove his innocence, Mickey must either put up with the inhuman conditions or engineer an escape.
Reviews
After 30 years, this movie is obviously dated, but no more so than the much more numerous anti-Nazi propaganda films that are still seen today almost 70 years after Hitler's regime was wiped off the face of the Earth. When Gulag was made and first shown, there were, beyond any doubt, many thousands of prisoners in the USSR, large numbers of whom were arrested and imprisoned for their political or ideological opinions. Of course this was (and still is) the case in many other countries around the world, but when this movie was released, the USSR and its East European satellite states were the enemies of the USA and its allies, and however many clichés and inaccuracies the film contains, it was an entertaining and long-overdue look at one of the most unpleasant regimes of the 20th century, and a warning to all of us on both sides of the former Iron Curtain that we must ensure that Soviet Communism stays in the garbage can of history where it belongs.
Those who say that this film is a cliche are not facing reality. I remember when some people were calling terrorists a silly cliche until 2 flew into the trade towers. Tyrants do and have always existed which may be a bit much for some sheltered mall crazy Americans to accept.In fact there has been much about Soviet activities that has remained not really revealed and most films about it have vanished. Even Second World War involvement by the Soviets both positive and negative is rarely mentioned. This film shows an interesting view of the rarely mentioned soviet system of prisons called Gulags in which millions had vanished with almost no photos or films of.
Honestly, do Americans know how much we rubbish their blind devotion to the Good Ol' U. S. of A.? Highly strung anti-Soviet drama with Malcolm McDowell once again showing us how nasty the Brits can be. The scrumptious David Keith is starry-eyed but tasty as ever...he's the only reason I watched it anyway!
This film includes a star runner who goes to Russia and is soon captured and held against his will. He's eventually sent out to the historical Gulag camp where he convinces two other inmates to attempt an escape. One of the guys ends up becomming a 'sandwich', that is, food for the other two during the cross country escape. There's a steamy shower scene about half way through the film where Nance Paul bares all.
