Dear Editor:
I have seen the movie “Bitter Harvest” two times, and each time I walked away impressed by the accurate portrayal of the historical events of the Holodomor. Kudos to the writers Richard Bachynsky-Hoover and George Mendeluk, who also is the Director.
I was extremely upset and disappointed at reading the many negative reviews of “Bitter Harvest.” Having worked in the motion picture industry for over 45 years, I don’t recall seeing such trashing of a film. So, I decided to contact my long-time friend, Dr. Ted Baehr, a respected Hollywood critic, founder and chairman of the Christian Film and Television Commission and publisher of the book “How to Succeed in Hollywood Without Losing your Soul” and MovieGuide Magazine for families. I asked Dr. Baehr if he had seen “Bitter Harvest” and if he could give me his opinion of the film. This is how he framed his views.
“‘Bitter Harvest’ is a must-see movie. It is a powerful drama about the horrible starvation of Ukrainian peasants by the Soviet Communist atheists in 1932-1933, and officially condemned by the United Nations. The movie is well plotted, with terrific acting and it exposes all the imaginable evils of Stalin’s collectivism, socialism and Communism in the Soviet Union, and reveals the horrific past and perhaps the future of Communism. Even today, countries like Venezuela are facing the evils that confronted Ukraine in the 1930s.”
Dr. Baehr saw this film as a Christian movie with many references to God, Jesus and the Church, a story about God-fearing people, fighting against oppression by a tyrannical atheist government and being martyred for their faith.
I think that the truth about Communism was too unsettling for many critics to comprehend.
Woodland Hills, Calif.