GrimPrecise I'll tell you why so serious

Numerootno A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

Mandeep Tyson The acting in this movie is really good.

Justina The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Edgar Allan Pooh . . . "beginning of the end" for the movie studio known as "M-G-M." At a time when Warner Bros. was heroically churning out Beacon of Democracy features such as CONFESSIONS OF A NAZI SPY, rival film production company MGM was striving to please the "Third Reich's" beloved Fuhrer with such party line fare as COMRADE X, since Germany was such a financially important market for the money boys at the so-called "Billionaire's Studio." In the short term, MGM's anti-Allies screed compelled what was then called "The U.S. War Department" to seize editorial control of EVERY American movie production company, dictating the minutest aspects of war-time film scripts with reams of red tape rules and regulations. In the long term, of course, MGM was relegated into becoming the tiny corner of Warner Bros. that it is Today. COMRADE X, unlike the famed home movie of Der Fuhrer's Videographer Leni Riefenstahl (TRIUMPH OF THE WILL) did NOT win a top Oscar (via the sort of rigged elections for which MGM itself was notorious), but like TRIUMPH it is deviously entertaining because Satan knows that you can trap more souls with honey than vinegar. Despite MGM's ridicule, Russia sacrificed 100 times as much as the U.S. in terms of lives and other resources to destroy MGM's Nazi buddies, with the "Eastern Front" outweighing the effect of ten "D-Day" invasions.

secondtake Comrade X (1940)This starts stiffly, with some clichés quickly pasted forward to get the plot to fit the news at the time. It's set in Moscow, and WWII is under way. The Germans are evil but more to the point, the Soviets are not to be trusted. Eve Arden, in her usual delivery, is the saving grace, but it still feels forced. Thankfully Clark Gable shows up. If he isn't always his best when he's trying to be a comic actor (he's really funny when he's a straight actor with funny lines), he still brings the screen to life. In fact, as the movie continues an absurd (and not very well written) satire of the Soviet Union, Gable holds it in check by his nonchalance and usual earthy delivery.Of course, the Americans in Russia are the only sensible people there. It doesn't feel like a propaganda film, but the point of view is so limited (and one-sided) there isn't much balance. But it's a comedy, and director King Vidor is known for competance if not comic brilliance. Hedy Lamarr makes a stiff Russian with a terrible accent. (She was Austrian by birth.) The chemistry between Lamarr and Gable is comfortable but the writing holds it back. And there is the biggest mystery here—Ben Hecht was one of the writers, and he's normally a bright spot.So this has some good credentials but stumbles along, mostly because of obvious jokes that haven't worn well over the decades.

edwagreen Clark Gable and Hedy La Marr starred in this awful mess.This is certainly no Ninotchka, even with its anti-Communist theme. The film is just awful.It would have been funnier had they managed to make more fun of the Nazis in it. I realize that the film came out in 1940 and since we weren't at war with the beasts as yet, the film board probably wanted to cool things down.The ending becomes a ridiculous tank chase and becomes very silly after a while.The Commies come and go and knock each other off as if it's nothing. Even though it was so true, it was done film wise in such a boring way. The idea that the poet philosopher was a true phony who went on to kill his supporters was not adequately explained.A year after "Gone With the Wind" and Clark Gable had a bomb with this film!

blanche-2 Clark Gable and Hedy Lamarr star in "Comrade X," a 1940 comedy from MGM also starring Eve Arden, Felix Bressart and Oscar Homolka. Gable and Arden are American journalists in Russia while the Russians search frantically for "Comrade X," a reporter sending out uncensored stories to the United States. One man knows the identity of Comrade X - a bumbling valet in the hotel where many of the reporters stay (Felix Bressart). He fears his outspoken daughter is in danger of being purged by the Russians like so many and blackmails Comrade X into getting her out of the country. Well, we've known from the beginning who Comrade X is - who else - and he reluctantly agrees to his assignment - reluctantly until he gets a look at the daughter (Lamarr), who is driving a streetcar using the name Theodore. Women can't drive streetcars.Everyone is very good in this film, and Lamarr's staggering beauty and Gable's macho man are pluses. The supporting cast is great - Homolka is a government official who says his predecessor "met with an unfortunate accident" - as many of them do throughout the film.I have to agree with one of the posters here - the scene with the tanks is absolutely priceless, particularly when you realize that films didn't have the mechanisms for "special effects" as they do today.Lots of fun at the expense of good old Mother Russia.