Battleship Potemkin
1925
Sergei Eisenstein's film of the famed Odessa revolt has been one of the landmarks of cinema since its release. Commissioned by the government to commemorate the failed uprising of 1905, it's without stars or even actors in the usual sense, exemplifying the collectivism it celebrates. The Battleship Potemkin has just returned .. Read more
| Starring | Alexander Antonov, Vladimir Barsky, Grigori Alexandrov, Mikhail Gomorov |
|---|---|
| Director | Sergei Eisenstein |
| Genres | Drama, World Cinema |
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Battleship Potemkin
Sergei Eisenstein's film of the famed Odessa revolt has been one of the landmarks of cinema since its release. Commissioned by the government to commemorate the failed uprising of 1905, it's without stars or even actors in the usual sense, exemplifying the collectivism it celebrates. The Battleship Potemkin has just returned from the war with Japan, its crew near mutiny because of brutal treatment and bad rations. When they're served maggot-infested meat one morning, the sailors finally rebel. One of the sailors, Vakulinchuk (Aleksandr Antonov), dissuades the officers from firing upon the mutineers, and they join the rest of the crew in revolt. Hearing of the mutiny, the people of Odessa send supplies to express their solidarity with the crew and gather en masse to mourn a slain sailor. The czar's troops arrive to dispel the crowd. In perhaps the most famous sequence in film history, the director rhymically intercuts shots of the troops marching machinelike down the Odessa steps with shots of innocent citizens being killed and wounded, in a brilliant embodiment of the director's theories of montage. Aside from CITIZEN KANE, perhaps the most perfectly constructed film ever made, the film's vision of tyranny and rebellion remain as powerful today as it was in 1925.
| Starring | Alexander Antonov, Vladimir Barsky, Grigori Alexandrov, Mikhail Gomorov |
|---|---|
| Director | Sergei Eisenstein |
| Studio | EUREKA ENTERTAINMENT |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 14 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Drama, World Cinema |
| Language | DVD: Russian |
| Released | DVD: 17 Jan 2000 Production year: 1925 |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (2)
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Originally planned as a brief episode in an epic history of the 1905 Revolution, this silent classic from Sergei Eisenstein remains one of the most influential films ever made. A masterpiece of editorial dexterity, it proved that symbolic imagery could have the same emotional and intellectual impact on an audience as a straightforward narrative. You don't need a working knowledge of Russian history, Marxist dialectic, Japanese pictographs or the techniques of “montage” to appreciate the power of the plate smashing that sparks the mutiny, the fog scene, the roaring lion and the legendary massacre on the Odessa Steps. Don't be put off by its highbrow reputation, this is essential cinema.
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A textbook cinema classic, and masterpiece of creative editing, especially in the famous Odessa Steps sequence in which innocent civilians are mown down in the bloodshed; the happenings of a minute are drawn into five by frenzied cross-cutting. The film c
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Most helpful member's review
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16 out of 18 people found this review helpful
Left of the middle
I was interested in this film as it continually crops up in top 100 lists. The film is about an uprising in Russia during the first world war that begins on the Battleship Potemkin. It is impossible to distance the film from the label 'propoganda' as it depicts the brave workers struggle against the evil officers in a simplistic fashion. However, two things recommend the film. First, the photography is excellent capturing the mood of the uprising well. Second, the film is a record of an important event in Russian history, which had far reaching consequences for Russian politics. Overall I would say it is an interesting film rather than an enjoyable film, more like a documentary than a piece of entertainment.
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Most recent members' review
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5 out of 5 people found this review helpful
Yes - it really is a classic!
After all the plaudits this film has received over the decades, I was prepared to be disappointed. Instead I was astonished that such a stunning, intelligent, sumptuous and moving film could have been made so early-on in cinematic history. Not a scene is wasted as the revolution is allegorised through a story of injustice and cruelty that prompts heroism, brotherhood, determination and finally, triumph. Riefenstahl aside, has propaganda (apparently commissioned by Lenin) ever been done better? I can?t believe there are some on here who found it boring. Watch it again and pay attention this time!
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Sergei Eisenstein's film of the famed Odessa revolt has been one of the landmarks of cinema since its release. Commissioned by the government to commemorate the failed uprising of 1905, it's without ... -