Back when I was growing up in the Soviet Union (1986-1993), I remember seeing a Russian film that I haven't been able to identify. I think it was called "Spiralka" (meaning "spiral" in the native Russian). It was about a criminal who has a motorcycle accident that permanently damages his brain. He receives a brain transplant from some sort of an intellectual (a writer, a professor, not sure which). Unsurprisingly, the transplant leads to various complications, not the least of which is a profound personality change on the part of the criminal. He begins to read more, immerses himself in philosophy, and begins to feel genuine remorse for the crimes he's committed. In the end (and this is a scene I clearly remember) the criminal dies but not before seeing the brain donor standing before him immersed in a white light. Did I imagine this movie or does it really exist?
posted by leybman on Aug 5, 2009 - 2 answers

Did they really get the bright idea to host a college football game in Soviet Russia, and then have to cancel it because they couldn't sell enough vacation packages? The Wikipedia entry about the Glasnost Bowl has a bunch of outdated angelfire pages as its sources. The 1989 New York Times article that mentions it doesn't treat it as very interesting. I think it would make a publishable journal article if it's real and am looking for more info.
posted by srs on Jul 4, 2009 - 1 answer

Soviet science: Besides the obvious topic of space exploration, name some examples of post World War II Soviet science that were so good, they entered global, widespread use without much modification and are perhaps still in use today. [more inside]
posted by Cool Papa Bell on Mar 2, 2009 - 8 answers

Frederic Jameson's Fear and Loathing in Globalization talks about Eastern European/Soviet nostalgia art, "in which a complete set of mass-produced industrial products, from toilet seats to window panes, from shower heads to automobiles, had been invented from scratch, altogether different from the actually existing Western inventory." Are there any examples of this type of art on the web?
posted by matkline on Dec 28, 2008 - 5 answers

I'm trying to remember what the title of this movie was. I think it was made in the 1960's or 1970's in the U.S. I remember watching it on TV on the Sunday Matinee show in the 1980's. The plot involved this millionaire who wanted to attack the Soviet Union, he had a small force which was to attack Russia by driving trucks across the polar ice cap. All I can remember was that in the end of the film his plan is thwarted by the Soviets, who send planes to bomb the ice, and the trucks sink to the bottom of the ocean. Any ideas?
posted by smoothvirus on Jun 27, 2008 - 3 answers

Help me teach myself about the current political and social climate in Russia. [more inside]
posted by ellenaim on Mar 21, 2008 - 12 answers

Is it possible to buy .su email address? [more inside]
posted by damn dirty ape on Nov 30, 2007 - 5 answers

In the context of advertising and marketing in Russia, who are the opinion leaders and influencers for the 18 to 35 year old demographic? [more inside]
posted by PoopyDoop on Nov 26, 2007 - 9 answers

I have heard several reference to a Soviet propaganda poster that I can't find. Maybe it's a hoax, perhaps you've seen it. You might even know where I can view it. [more inside]
posted by Mayor Curley on Oct 4, 2007 - 9 answers

My brother gave me a Soviet-era pocketwatch for my 40th birthday. On the obverse of the watch are two wolves in a forest. Within the forest, there is a circle of rope with little pennants tied it. These pennants appear to be hemming the wolves into a circle so that hunters can capture them. Can anyone explain this?
posted by Cataline on Jul 10, 2007 - 5 answers

Can you provide context for a gas masked army of children? [more inside]
posted by zamboni on Jun 29, 2007 - 16 answers

Can anyone name this "Soviet" looking font? Or point me to some other Eastern European fonts in the same vein (preferably free)? [more inside]
posted by sharksandwich on Nov 30, 2006 - 6 answers

Any Soviet scholars out there? In my copy of Nadezda Mandelstam's incredible and beautiful memoir, Hope Against Hope, the 1999 paperback edition by Harvill Press, there is an unexplained footnote: "H.A.H.-" followed by a capital letter. Does this occur in other editions? Does anyone know what it's about? At first I imagined it was a coded message, but when I realized that they occurred regularly and that the letters ascended (though some letters seem to be skipped, like from H.A.H.-I to H.A.H.-K) that maybe it was a way of demarcing sections of smuggled samizdat. Or maybe it's something more mundane?
posted by bukharin on Nov 4, 2006 - 3 answers

Is it common for Americans to incorrectly assume that Russian is only spoken in Russia but forget that it is also a common language in the former Soviet states? [more inside]
posted by gregb1007 on Oct 18, 2006 - 37 answers

Are any of the old Soviet poster designers still working? [more inside]
posted by brundlefly on Sep 29, 2006 - 5 answers

I am 23 years old and have been with my girlfriend, who is from the former Soviet Union, for almost four years now. We often have drastic and painful arguments that result from socio-cultural and religious differences. Is this a common problem or experience for those in similar relationships? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Jun 11, 2006 - 37 answers

In the book I'm currently reading about Bobby Fischer and his match with Boris Spassky, the author's write, "the Soviets would construct their propaganda edifice on three main pillars, 'chess, the circus and ballet. In all three the Soviet Union could be shown to be far ahead of the West.'" [more inside]
posted by tellurian on Nov 27, 2005 - 13 answers

Jason Kottke, BoingBoing and a couple other places have picked up the story of a Soviet-style poster that's been spotted on the DC-area Metro. Looking at it carefully, I just can't believe that this is genuine; for one thing, the poster's artwork just doesn't fit (take a glance at the hand just behind the head of the man in the foreground -- this is obviously a hand holding a flag, not someone grasping a pole in a Metro car). I've been looking through galleries of old Soviet propaganda posters all morning to see if I can find a source it could have been Photoshopped from, but without luck. Does anyone know more about this poster and whether it is genuine? Or if it isn't, what the actual source is?
posted by ubernostrum on Jun 9, 2005 - 17 answers