February 26, 2021

Get Your Cold War On


Get Your Cold War On
The fictional New York Global blares the headline: "Kennedy demands immediate withdrawal of Soviet missiles from Cuba." Valery Todorovsky Production Company

Russians obsessed with Cold War-era spy thrillers had a great week in mid-February when "The Optimists: Season 2 (Caribbean Season)" aired for two hours every night. The first season of the miniseries aired back in April 2017 on channel Rossiya-1.

The central plot is (warning: spoilers ahead!) a 1960s love story between a man who works in the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Dmitry Nesterov played by Sergey Bezrukov) and an American photographer (Alex Bradley played by Elizaveta Boyarskaya). The star-crossed lovers give up their relationship to save the world: Alex has to leave the Soviet Union forever to inform JFK that Khrushchev is not trying to start World War III during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Who, then, are the titular "optimists?" It is not entirely clear, but it is presumably the foreign affairs staff, who believe they are building a better future for their country and world. Or perhaps it is the ill-fated lovers, who have become personae non grata in each other's countries but have a scrap of hope when Nesterov is posted to Vietnam in the closing scene.

In an interview, Boyarskaya stated that her inspiration for the role was Jacqueline Kennedy.

Scene from "The Optimists"
This is the face of every American who finds herself in Russia: Elizaveta Boyarskaya as Alex Bradley. | Valery Todorovsky Production Company

Minnesotan-Michigander Odin Biron plays Bradley's husband; his natural American accent can be heard under the Russian dubbing, but he trained as an actor at the Moscow Art Theatre.

Oh, and Che Guevara is there too, played by Spanish actor Andreas Muñoz. Check out a clip of Che Guevara: The Musical! ("Cuba is a dream!"), the show within the show, here.

One Russian site claims that "The Optimists" feels more American than Russian. It has a definite "The Americans" vibe – but with the action taking place across the pond and the cutaway shots going in the opposite direction. Maybe it feels American because the Soviet diplomats constantly drink alcohol, smoke foreign cigarettes, and sleep with everyone but their spouses. In a word, they are immoral.

The show is full of double agents and people you didn't know were agents, making for exciting, if not entirely original, Cold War nostalgia television.

Intro to "The Optimists"
Playing with submarines and sugar cubes to make Cuban rum in the opening credits. | Valery Todorovsky Production Company

 

You Might Also Like

A Double Life
  • January 01, 2021

A Double Life

On the life and mysteries of one of history's most famous sleeper spies, Konon Molody.
The Hunt for Movie Russian
  • September 14, 2020

The Hunt for Movie Russian

"Kakov nipudt pakaru!" The classic 1990 movie Hunt for Red October had a $30 million budget. Apparently none of that went towards Russian language coaches.
The Actor-Agents of the KGB
  • February 01, 2020

The Actor-Agents of the KGB

A former KGB agent recently claimed that many Soviet celebrities, including multiple famous actors, were agents of the “special services."
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

Jews in Service to the Tsar
October 09, 2011

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

A Taste of Russia
November 01, 2012

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka
November 01, 2012

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

Life Stories
September 01, 2009

Life Stories

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.

The Moscow Eccentric
December 01, 2016

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.

Murder at the Dacha
July 01, 2013

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.

About Us

Russian Life is the 31-year-old publication of an award-winning publishing house that also creates books, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955