Cowboys and Indians, Soviet style

For a different perspective, I wanted to link to this story from the Moscow Times on Soviet-era Western movies (yes the cowboy and indian kind). Books and movies set in the American west were actually quite popular in the Soviet Union and its satellites. Studios in East Germany produced many movies in the genre.

Of course, like most entertainment in the Soviet era, there was also a political message. In this case it was the indians, not the cowboys, who were the heroes. The communal life of the Native Americans was held up as a living example of the socialist ideal, one that usually came to ruin in the story thanks to the capitalistic cowboys.