An "appendix" to the then-ongoing Histoire(s) du cinéma project (1988-1998), The Children Play Russian is a video essay made just after the collapse of the Soviet Union. By juxtaposing and superimposing fragments from Russian and Soviet films with contemporary footage shot by cinematographer Caroline Champetier, Godard constructs a contrapuntal meditation on lost utopias, the relationship between montage and icons, and the nature of the cinematic image.