The Commies are Coming

Not as funny as the box makes it look, but...
Honestly, this is a hard one to rate. What you've got here is a 1950's communist scare film, hosted by none other than Jack Webb of TV's Dragnet. So, you're taking your 1950's American life for granted? Well, what if you suddenly woke up in a town than looked just like yours... but was run by communists? "The classic paranoia film," the box calls it. There is an additional short about the meaning of the oath a soldier takes, with an apparently funny caricature of a Korean communist.The biggest value in these films is purely historical. I really got a sense of the cultural atmosphere of the time, and of the moral reactions that drove people to make films such as these. I think they are necessary viewing for students of American culture of the period, or of American culture in general.I can see how this could also be funny, and you probably already know if you agree. I myself didn't find it funny, and I'm I big fan of MST3K. The humor is, quite honestly, minimal. The production values and competency of the filmmaking are fine, even expertly done at times. There aren't factual inaccuracies or cultural misunderstandings of communism -- most if not all of the charges leveled against communism as it was in Russia are accurate. You might get some amusement from the idea that voting, going to town council meetings, and attending church is in any way to fight the communist menace. But that's about it. The appeal of this film is the unique atmosphere it creates, not the humor.All in all, this is something you have to be in the mood for. If you love the style of 1950's documentaries, this will not disappoint. If you're looking for camp, though, you won't find it unless you think being afraid of communists is always funny.