Michael_Elliott Red Nightmare (1962) *** (out of 4)Jerry (Jack Kelly) is the proud father of three and has a loving wife but he wants to let up on his PTA and union responsibilities. He then gets a chance to see why all Americas should stay focused as he has a nightmare about being control ed by Communists.George Waggner (THE WOLF MAN, HORROR ISLAND) directed this twenty- eight minute short that tries to scare Americans into making sure they understand the horrors that would face them if they were under Communist control. The film plays out like an episode of The Twilight Zone and it's actually a lot more entertaining than most propaganda films.This one works well because Kelly gives such a good performance in the lead. I thought he sold his role quite nicely and there was some nice narration by Jack Webb who also hosts this. Another thing that works is that the material is quite over-dramatic but the director manages to sell it without it coming off as being too silly. RED NIGHTMARE isn't a masterpiece or even a very good movie but it's an interesting piece of history at at time when these type of fears were quite strong.

MARIO GAUCI This educational short – intended as a propaganda piece, solemnly narrated by Jack Webb (a familiar face of the era) and personally overseen by movie mogul Jack L. Warner – feels very much like an episode of "The Twilight Zone". As in INVASION USA (1952), on whose DVD it's included, the politics are hard to take nowadays – though the fantasy, albeit moralistic, framework of the narrative (wherein a passive working-class American wakes up one morning to find his hometown overrun by the Communists) makes it at least palatable in an IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (1946) sort of way. On the other hand, being compact and on a much smaller scale than the earlier feature-film, it's easier to suspend belief in its case. By the way, George Waggner (billed "waGGner", for whatever reason) is best-known for his stint directing such classic Universal chillers as THE WOLF MAN (1941).

Ralph Michael Stein I've been showing this Cold War chestnut to my Constitutional Law students for at least fifteen years. I screen it during our examination of First Amendment cases from the 50s and early 60s. That was when the Supreme Court initially upheld convictions of leading American communists (mostly older, suit wearing and essentially harmless types). Increasingly alarmed that First Amendment freedoms were being sacrificed to fears of a "putsch" that never seemed to be imminent or even real, the Court began overturning convictions while simultaneously expanding free speech protections. The older students remember the times but most are in their early to mid-twenties and they can't believe tax dollars paid for Jack Webb, employing his best "Sergeant Friday" monotone, to warn Americans about the danger of taking freedom for granted and ignoring the threat of insidious Soviet subversion.What gets the most laughs are the domestic scenes where "Father Knows Best" is hijacked to deliver the political message. The housewife is a stay-at-home who is assured by her laid back husband that she's no worse a nag than most spouses. The kids are just so adorable. Even the teenage daughter determined to marry her sweetheart can't mount more than a mild sullenness when dad objects to an early marriage. Sheesh!Hubby's "Red Nightmare," his night of a bad dream, gives a good portrayal of the 1950s view of how the Communists - domestic and conquering - would wipe out all our freedoms. Reflecting the fears that swept Hollywood in the age of HUAC and Mc Carthy, the viewer is assured that this very important film was produced under "the direct supervision of Jack L. Warner." If you want to really get a flavor of that fear-laden time, check out http://www.conelrad.com.

Raven18 Basically a good 1950's propaganda film to make fun of on a rainy day. But if you can't appreciate it's camp value I'd suggest you skip it. Otherwise it would make a good follow up movie to The Atomic Cafe and Reefer Madness