The Soviet government of the 1920s controlled all aspects of Russian filmmaking. The medium that was just beginning to learn how to entertain mass audiences in Europe and America was appropriated by the Soviets to teach and indoctrinate, and so those first Soviet films are of limited appeal—mostly historic—to today's videophiles. That said, the early Russian filmmakers invente…
1938 Sergei Eisenstein At the risk of making light of an acknowledged masterpiece of world cinema, it must be said that Sergei Eisenstein's second great piece of unashamed flag-waving propaganda (after Battleship Potemkin) has aged artlessly. Given the film's checkered genesis, that's almost inevitable. It's obvious that Eisenstein is uncomfortable with the basic premis…
Potemkin Bronenosets Potemkin 1925 Grigori Alexandrov, Sergei Eisenstein Sergei Eisenstein's unembarrassed propaganda is one of the silent screen's first international hits. Short and swiftly paced, it remains a remarkably watchable work, too, for at least part of its running time. Contemporary audiences new to the film will be astonished at how often its big scenes have been copied …
1934 Sergei Vassiliev, Georgy Vassiliev If this piece of revolutionary propaganda had been made in America, it might well have been directed by John Ford and starred John Wayne. The film is unashamed hero-worship of a rough-hewn common man who bravely steps forward in a time of trouble and becomes a reluctant leader. In this case, though, he's a card-carrying Soviet member of the Red Army.…
1965 David Lean Though it doesn't equal Lawrence of Arabia, David Lean's epic wartime romance may be his most accessible film. It tells a simple love story in a complex setting and, for the most part, avoids easy resolutions to messy emotional relationships. Even though the focus is squarely on those relationships, everything in the film revolves around the Russian Revolution. The v…
1956 King Vidor If truth in titling guidelines had been followed, this lumbering epic would have been called Peace and War. Most of the military side of the story takes place in the second half, and it seems slow to arrive. When the subject does turn to Napoleon's (Herbert Lom) disastrous invasion of Russia, however, the action becomes more impressive and interesting. But before the battle…