An unusual example of Hollywood produced pro-Soviet propaganda, Michael Curtiz’s follow-up to Casablanca presents a positive rendering of Stalinist Russia as the nation prepared to enter World War II. Based on the memoirs of Ambassador Joseph E. Davies, the film chronicles the diplomat’s journey to Moscow, where he and his family are treated regally by Stalinist officials. Warner Brothers was encouraged by the Roosevelt administration to create a more sympathetic portrait of U.S./Soviet relations in a film that was later condemned by the House Un-American Activities Committee.