Amerika (miniseries)

Amerika (Suggesting a Russian name for the United States - this used and still is a left-political way of writing America, often AmeriKKKa - see Alternative political spellings) is an American television miniseries that was broadcast in 1987. It starred Kris Kristofferson, Mariel Hemingway, Sam Neill, Robert Urich and Sam Stone. It was about what life would be like in the United States after a non-violent takeover by the Soviet Union. It is interesting they dared to make it while the Soviet Union still existed, but who knew it would break apart?

The subject matter of this miniseries attracted considerable attention and controversy at the time of broadcast. It was made partly in response to the 1983 television film The Day After, which some critics felt was too pacifist and did not portray the consequences of a possible loss of American freedom. This criticism of The Day After was espoused in an article written by attorney (and later television personality), Ben Stein. The writers of the miniseries acknowledged that this article provided some of the inspiration, although Ben Stein was not directly involved in the series.

Amerika received mixed reviews on artistic grounds; many critics and viewers felt it was too long. A number of critics argued that it would be bad for Soviet-American relations.

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In the late 1980s, as the USSR's economic and political decline puts it in danger of losing the Cold War, the Soviet leadership makes a desperate gamble to rearrange the global balance of power. Several huge thermonuclear weapons are exploded in the ionosphere over the United States. The Electromagnetic pulse (EMP) effect of the weapons fried the nation's military and commercial communications and computer systems, electrical grid, and, indeed, any piece of equipment that relies on computer technology (Such as most late-model automobiles). With America's ICBMs inoperative, and National Command Authority unable to contact US military forces abroad to counterattack, America is forced to accept Soviet terms for surrender. The United States quickly finds itself enslaved to the Russians.

The subsequent takeover of the U.S. is dubbed "The Transition". The series details the final phase of the transition -- the breakup of the United States ten years after it's defeat.

(The above events are implied in the miniseries, although never directly explained. The description is taken from the novelisation of the miniseries, Amerika: The Triumph of the American Spirit by Brauna E. Pouns & Donald Wrye (Pocket Books, 1987). An introduction to the miniseries explaining the conquest of America ended up on the cutting room floor before broadcasting.)

The miniseries focuses on life 10 years after the American defeat, with the nation occupied by a United Nations Peacekeeping force called the United Nations Special Service Unit (UNSSU). The UNSSU is comprised largely of Eastern Bloc-nations and overseen by an East German, Major Helmut Gurtman.

The flag of the occupation is the pale blue UN-Flag, with crossed American and Soviet flags superimposed on the sides. The American flag is shown without its stars, and this starless flag is displayed during a "Lincoln Day" parade. The standard U.S. ensign is outlawed, although in one scene at the beginning of the miniseries, a group of war-veteran's are showed marching with the American flag upside down. (An upside-down ensign is a distress signal at sea.)

The story follows three leaders.

Peter Bradford is a well-meaning, patriotic, county administrator in Nebraska who cooperates with the occupiers to provide a better life for his community. Bradford gains the attention of the Soviet leadership because, while interested in cooperating with the Soviets to rebuild his community, he is independent, and widely respected by his constituents. The Soviets "tap" him to run one of the Bantustan-like states -- "Heartland" -- carved out of the former United States.

Devin Milford was a maverick politican before the occupation, and even ran for president in 1992, after the defeat. He was placed in a reeducation camp for daring to speak the truth about the Soviet conquest during his presidential campaign. At the beginning of the miniseries, Devin is declared "rehabilitated" and released back into society -- into the custody of his father, who lives in the county run by Peter Bradford, Nebraska.

Andrei Denisov, of the Red Army, is the administrator for the American Midwest. At times, Andrei seems disappointed by the ease with which America had been conquered.

The movie makes a critique of American society in the 80's, implying that disunity and unwillingness to defend freedom on the part of many citizens made the conquest quite simple. At one point, Andrei observes that while their plan of disrupting American commerce and military forces with the electromagnetic pulse attack succeeded far beyond their wildest dreams, because upon losing technology and communications, Americans turned inward, not caring about national issues anymore, seeking only to retain a piece of the prosperity that had once been their's.

The Soviet leaders of the occupation are faced with the twin problems of keeping America pacified and convincing the Politburo that their fears of a revitalized America are misplaced because the country is under occupation and cannot pose a threat anymore. The Politburo is not convinced, and considers exploding nuclear weapons in several American cities as a warning -- to the American people, and to the world. Gen. Petya Samanov (The Soviet General in command of the occupation.) convinces the leadership to accept a compromise plan -- no nuclear weapons will be exploded, the U.S. will be divided up into "Client states" (Such as Heartland,) and the U.S. Capitol Building will be destroyed, along with copies of the American Constitution, and Declaration of Independence. At the same time, most of the members of Congress will be killed in the 'terrorist attack'.

After the attack is carried out, Petya surveys the damage, and recognizes the enormity of the crime that he has just committed. Sitting in the Speaker's chair in the House of Representatives, he commits suicide.

In the final episode of the miniseries, as Heartland is 'seceding' from the United States, there are scenes of Americans digging up guns they have hidden for 10 years. In addition, Heartland troops along with local militia attack the local UNSSU compound. A scene with Americans raising the U.S. flag on top of a water tower is shown. There are references to Second American Revolution. However, the series ends with General Sittman, leader of the Heartland Defense Force (And a former U.S. Marine,) shooting Devin Milford before he can make a nation-wide broadcast calling on Americans to resist the breakup of the U.S. Although there is some hope that the spirit of America lives on at the end, it is clear that the Soviet plan to destroy the United States will come to fruition -- Although the ideals of America will endure.

In the series, America is divided in several puppet state's, including:

• Heartland (Including the Midwest)
• Pacifica
• New England
• Florida is characterized as the "space zone".
• The rust belt has its own special problems. Most of its advanced factory equipment was removed at the start of the occupation and taken to the U.S.S.R. (As happened in East Germany after the Second World War). The region suffers 50% unemployment as a result.

Travel and communications between the various zones is heavily restricted, part of the "Divide and conquer" plan of the Soviet occupiers.

Overseas, Fidel Castro leads what is known as "Greater Cuba", embracing most of the Caribbean and Latin America. The Chinese region of Manchuria has apparently been absorbed into the U.S.S.R.; Petya remarks at one point that a rebellion has occurred "In our own Manchuria." A man named "Mbele" leads the "Socialist Republic of Southern Africa", while "Barghout" leads "IraQistan". Eastern Europe is characterized as a powderkeg.

Abraham Lincoln is included with Karl Marx, and Lenin in propaganda. Indeed, the signature scene in the film is a twenty-minute, dialog-free depiction of the celebration of "Lincoln-Lenin Day" (The holiday replacing the Fourth of July).

Another scene shows schoolchildren in Chicago learning about Social darwinism, which is characterized as the dominant philosophy in the old United States, before the Soviet conquest and occupation.

A pledge of allegiance is given by "rehabilitated" political prisoners upon release from the American gulags. It goes as follows:

"I pledge my allegiance to the flag of the community of American, Soviet, and United Nations of the World, and to the principle for which it stands -- A nation, indivisible with others of the Earth, joined in peace, and justice for all."

• The 1984-film Red Dawn presented a conventional/nuclear Soviet attack on the United States, aided by allies from Latin America, and a group of high schoolers who form a guerilla group to oppose them.

• The 1952-film Invasion USA, showed a successful Soviet invasion of the U.S. succeeding because the citizenry had fallen into moral decay, war profiteering, and isolationism. The film was later parodied on Mystery Science Theater 3000 (This film is not the similarly-titled Chuck Norris action-vehicle from 1985.)
• The novel Invasion by Eric Harry features a conventional Chinese invasion into the Southern United States.
• Eric Harry's novel Arc Light concerns an accidental limited nuclear exchange between the U.S. and the Russian Republic, followed by a conventional U.S./European invasion of Russia.
• Warday by Whitley Streiber and James Kuselka is a novel that takes a Pseudo-documentary look at the United States, five years after a Limited nuclear war is fought between the U.S. and U.S.S.R. Although only a few cities are hit in the exchange, America has been turned into a Third World country because of the effect that EMP had on its technology. Probably meant as a "serves them right"-purpose.
• Resurrection Day by Brendan DuBois was an alternate history novel about the United States in 1973, ten years after a nuclear war was fought between it and the Soviets over missiles in Cuba.
• The role-playing game, The Price of Freedom by Greg Costikyan presents role-playing in an America occupied by the USSR. It is apparently a D20 game. The first scenario involves the player characters' reaction to the arrival of Soviet troops in their home town, one of which might not be able to choose.

• Amerika at IMDb
• The actual America, although only the continent.