Russian Civil War

[freddy326]

Stalinist sh*t from beginning to end.

not really Stalinist, but it does tow the Bolshevik line. The film was based on a novel written by a commissar who fought with Chapaev and I was comparing it to 'The Admiral',
but I do enjoy reading thoughtful and well reasoned comments such as yours!

The Chapaev film also spawned a whole load of jokes, such as this

'On the occasion of an anniversary of the October Revolution, Furmanov gives a political lecture to the rank and file: "...And now we are on our glorious way to the shining horizons of Communism!"
"How did it go?", Chapaev asks Petka afterwards. "Exciting!... But unclear. What the hell is a horizon?"
"See Petka, it is a line you may see far away in the steppe when the weather is good. And it's a tricky one -- no matter how long you ride towards it, you'll never reach it. You'll only wear down your horse."'

but I think you need to be Russian to really appreciate them! By the way Furmanov was the commissar mentioned earlier who wrote the novel and Petka is Chapaev's aide-de-camp

[freddy326]

What would be a good read for general knowlegde on the RCW ? 

The Osprey gives a good basic overview. both of the following will give a much more in depth view

Orlando Figes, A People's Tragedy
Evan Mawdsley, The Russian Civil War