8 popular myths about Russia in 'The History of the World, Part II' on Hulu
This comedy is a sequel to Mel Brooks's hilarious hit “The History of the World, Part I”, which came out over 40 years ago. Unlike the original film, however, the series also features a Russian plot.
Of course, there is no way these ostentatiously politically incorrect sketches could be used for studying history. Authenticity and the life-like portrayal of historical characters were clearly not the authors' intention. Suffice it to say that Russia’s last tsar, Nicholas II, is played by Danny DeVito and the Romanovs look like the Kardarshian family.
Nevertheless, some things in the series really did happen. But which ones?
1. Grigori Rasputin was a favorite of the Romanovs? True, but only up to a point.
We see the Russian imperial family right from the very first episode. Tsarevich Alexei, the young heir to the throne, is unwell. The "attending physician" - the diabolical monk Grigori Rasputin - comes to see him. "The only mystic in Russia that I trust with my medical and political advice," Empress Alexandra Feodorovna tells viewers straightaway.
The real Grigori Rasputin, a peasant from Siberia who was taken for a holy man, did indeed become a member of the Romanovs' inner circle;in particular, he befriended Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. Rasputin was alleged to be successful in helping Tsarevich Alexei fight a hereditary disorder - hemophilia, which impairs the body's ability to make blood clot properly.
Rasputin was said to be so influential at the tsarist court that he could have state ministers appointed and dismissed, and that he directly interfered in the country's foreign and domestic policy. Today, however, historians agree that the extent of the monk's influence was greatly exaggerated. Yes, his opinion was heeded, but no more than that.
2. Rasputin possessed supernatural powers? Untrue, of course.
"Where the devil is he?" asks the Tsar. "Did someone say 'the Devil'?" responds Rasputin, appearing out of nowhere. There was a popular belief that the real Rasputin possessed not only healing gifts but also hypnotic and psychic powers. The myth has proved enduring - even in today's pop culture the name Rasputin has become synonymous with a villainous sorcerer, if not a demon. Among the latest portrayals of him in this guise are the action films “Hellboy” and “The King's Man: The Beginning”.
The authors of the Hulu series do not take Rasputin all that seriously, however. He is not so much a sorcerer here as a cunning charlatan who blames Moldovan demons for the Tsarevich’s hemophilia and prescribes wrapping the scrotum with garlic bulbs as treatment.
3. Neither bullets nor a dagger succeeded in killing Rasputin? Untrue, of course.
One of the plotlines of the series is a parody of the famous reality show 'Jackass'. The participants subject Rasputin to horrendous execution attempts but it has no effect. Moreover, the first attempt is close to the real circumstances of the monk's death: The members of the pro-monarchist, anti-Rasputin conspiracy threw the badly-injured monk into the Neva River.
According to the most popular account, the conspirators first poisoned Rasputin with cyanide and then, when the poison failed to work, shot him three times and battered him. But the monk was still breathing; so he was thrown from a bridge into the river. An autopsy later revealed no poison in the body of the murdered court favorite, and established that the first shot had been fatal.
4. The Tsar's daughter, Anastasia, survived the execution of the entire family? Untrue.
Along with Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra Feodorovna, the Bolsheviks also shot all five of their children - Tsarevich Alexei and the four daughters. Years later, however, dozens of women claimed to be Grand Duchess Anastasia who allegedly had miraculously survived - but they all proved to be impostors. The fable of the princess' survival proved so alluring that Hollywood even turned it into an animated film ('Anastasia', 1997). It is telling that the main villain in the movie was Grigori Rasputin.
5. Anti-Semitism drove Jews to revolution? That's true.
The Russian plot in the series is essentially a paraphrase of the famous Broadway musical “Fiddler on the Roof”, which was in turn based on the stories of Sholem Aleichem about the poor Jew, Tevye the Dairyman. Despite the obvious parodic tone, the musical's principal conflicts are carefully preserved: anti-Semitic pogroms drive Jews to join the revolutionary movement.
6. Vladimir Lenin survived an assassination attempt? Yes.
According to the storyline of the series, Fanny, who is Jewish, comes to Moscow to make her contribution to the Revolution, but she soon becomes disillusioned with the Bolsheviks and decides to kill Lenin. This is almost historically accurate! Shots really were fired at Lenin in Moscow on Aug. 30, 1918. And the would-be assassin was a young woman by the name of Fanny Kaplan. Although her biography differs drastically from the "cinematic" version, the real Kaplan did in fact believe Lenin to be a traitor to the Revolution.
A meta-joke is planted in the attempted assassination scene. Trying to dodge a bullet, Lenin points to Stalin: That's who's "ruining the soul of the Revolution!" As we know, on coming to power, Stalin was to retreat from many of the ideals of the Revolution - in particular, he crushed all opposition inside the Party.
7. Not all Socialists supported Lenin? That's true.
Fanny takes the decision to kill Lenin while at a gathering of Socialists. It emerges during the meeting that the most diverse kinds of Socialists have gathered in the room - the Mensheviks (another group in the communist movement alongside the Bolsheviks), and also the SRs or Socialist Revolutionaries. Fanny calls herself an SR - like the real Fanny Kaplan.
The Socialists were divided into factions over the question of what constituted the main revolutionary class: the peasantry or the proletariat. The SRs believed that in Russia, a predominantly agrarian country, naturally the peasants were the leaders of the Revolution. The Mensheviks, taking their cue from Marx and Lenin, favored the proletariat, but they were repulsed by the tactics of the Bolsheviks. In other words, both the SRs and the Mensheviks had good reason to dislike Lenin.
8. Stalin was an opponent of Trotsky in the struggle for power? Also true.
The series shows a meeting of the Bolsheviks, from which we can easily discern the political stature of each of them. Lenin enjoys undisputed authority, and surprisingly, he is portrayed with sympathy in the series. Next in the implied hierarchy is Leon Trotsky, the founder and main organizer of the Red Army. Stalin is also present at meetings, but no one takes him seriously. In one scene, Stalin finds himself alone and sings an aria on the theme that he will be appreciated one day and will run the country with kindness, love and light. If that doesn't work, he adds that there is also a Plan B to attain power another way.
Of course, this is not a historical reconstruction of real Bolshevik meetings, but to some degree the sketch is based on real events. It is true that at the time of the Revolution Stalin did not have a leading role in the party, and that he only came to prominence later, after the death of Lenin in 1924. And the charismatic Leon Trotsky, number two in the unofficial Bolshevik rankings, really went on to become his key rival.
