Death and the Plague in The Story of Wanderings

Little known beyond the Russian speaking world, The Story of Wanderings is a dark fantasy film produced in late period Soviet cinema. was classified as children’s by director, critics, and state. Produced Mosfilm, third oldest most influential studio Russia, it rare example horror, featuring several death scenes personified plague. Death’s presence stands contrast to idealised pioneers self-sacrificing themselves for good others, presenting world flawed characters stymied ambient ever-presence death. In post-Soviet Russian-speaking territories, understood critically masterfully constructed ‘adult’ horror disguised state-sponsored family film. This article examines way Alexander Mitta’s serves ‘dual audience’ context socialist ‘cultural industry’ that lacked an established genre. It also highlights how contradictions Socialism are revealed specific power dynamics between adult child