[riverdawg]

“The plot of Telefon involves a KGB plan to place deep-cover operatives in the US, who are brainwashed and embedded with instructions to spring into action and carry out pre-arranged acts of sabotage if contacted with a specific code phrase. They are then given American identities and sent here to live out their lives without incident, unless activated.”

Sounds similar to the current, award-winning FX series “The Americans.”

[tanknetter]

The difference is that in Telephon the Soviet Sleepers didn’t realize they were sleepers. They’d been brainwashed/programmed into believing that they were just ordinary Americans.

When the trigger code to activate them was used they basically became automations focused on completing their mission to the exclusion of all else.