Shot in 1925 as part of a twentieth anniversary of the 1905 revolution against the tsar, potemkin took ten weeks to shoot with the famous odessa steps sequence shot in seven days. Battleship potemkin 1925 a film by sergei eisenstein eng. Original potemkin beats the censors after 79 years film. David selznick in a memo to harry rapfi october 15, 1926. Since then, a lot of people have seen and praised the film. As the ships come nearer, the potemkin is sending light and flag signals calling on the other sides crews to treat them as brothers. This march, our akira kurosawa online film club will be discussing sergei eisensteins 1925 classic battleship potemkin. A technical masterpiece, battleship potemkin is soviet cinema at its finest, and its montage editing techniques remain influential to this day.
Seizing control of the potemkin and raising the red flag of revolution. Battleship potemkin had without a doubt the greatest cinematography of its time, and for decades to come. The odessa steps and the use of montage battleship potemkin. In 2016 it was ranked the eleventh best film of all time in a sight and sound magazine critics poll, one of only a handful of silentera films to make the list. He took the basic principles of continuous editing that d. These days, filmmakers use and abuse eisensteins techniques with such. Why is the movie battleship potemkin considered propaganda. On september 12, 2004, before an estimated audience of between 15,000 and 25,000 reports have varied widely at londons trafalgar square, the pet shop boys debuted a score they had composed for the latvianrussian director sergei eisensteins 1925 silent film classic battleship potemkin. The cinematography had a positive affect on the way i viewed this film, as a silent film, cinematography played a key role in getting the story across to the viewer. May 06, 2010 during the odessa steps sequence of sergei eisensteins battleship potemkin, a civilian crowd runs down the staircase from cossack gunfire. Battleship potemkin 1925 directed by sergei eisenstein.
That rebellion is glorified in one of the greatest silent films made, which shows how much can be communicated by facial expressions alone. Montage and juxtaposition in battleship potemkin odessa. While i cant claim much familiarity with films predating 1925, i expect that those people were probably right. Battleship potemkin 1925 davids intro to film studies. Feb 17, 2005 original potemkin beats the censors after 79 years. This fame both protected him up to a point and brought him to the constant attention of the authorities, involving him in a cat and mouse game for his entire professional life.
The ship had been built for the imperial russian navys black sea fleet. Battleship potemkin 1925 was one of the earliest films to use cinematic editing techniques such as the montage and the kuleshov effect. Battleship potemkin is the film which brought eisenstein, always a citizen of the world, to world attention. And i do have 2 questions for you if you dont mind. Sergei eisensteins 1925 landmark film presents a revolt that occurred in 1905 when the crew members of the potemkin battleship had begun to fight back against the officers of their ship due to malnutrition and mistreatment. The battleship potemkin is a 1925 soviet silent film directed by sergei eisenstein and produced by mosfilm. Original potemkin beats the censors after 79 years.
The sites consensus reads, a technical masterpiece, battleship potemkin is soviet cinema at its finest, and its montage editing techniques remain. But whats truly astonishing is how well the film stands up, even today. Battleship potemkin is the film which brought eisenstein, always a. Surprisingly, despite neils wellknown fascination for russian history and culture. Apr 12, 2011 i dont leave a great deal of responses, however i did a few searching and wound up here the odessa steps and the use of montage battleship potemkin cinema confessions.
However the more i look into it, i found it more interesting and therefore. The editing techniques in in casablanca and battleship potemkin and the film noir genre in bound and double indemnity. Aug 29, 2018 the potemkin uprising was sparked by a disagreement over food, but it was anything but accidental. Sequence analysis the odessa steps in the battleship potemkin. Commissioned to commemorate the russian revolution, battleship potemkin. Editing that invisible art of the cinema became fully realized in battleship potemkin, the silent russian masterpiece from director sergei eisenstein for better and for worse from the deft slicing and dicing of footage by longtime martin scorsese editor thelma schoonmaker to the incoherent jumbling in your average michael bay film eisenstein revealed how a true movie is.
It presents a dramatized version of the mutiny that occurred in 1905 when the crew of the russian battleship potemkin rebelled against its officers. In this paper i will attempt to discuss montage, the film battleship potemkin, analyze eisensteins methods of montage he used for the film, and come up with an idea as to how to transform this historical piece on to theater stage. Analysis of techniques used in battleship potemkin case. Battleship potemkin analysis battleship potemkin, released at the end of 1925 as only sergei eisensteins second fulllength film, was an elaboration on the reallife mutiny which took place on the battleship potemkin in june 1905.
The barrels of numerous cannons are ominously leveled towards the outnumbered battleship potemkin, but at the moment when the ships come into range, their crews allow the mutineers to pass through. I first thought the battleship potemkin 1925 would be a boring film because of my prejudice. One can argue how this particular work attempted to form a new cinema, and through critically looking at the films themeideology, narrative structure, filmmaking techniques and editing montage, with paying close attention to the communist ideology, imagism, marxism. Enraged with the deplorable conditions on board the armored cruiser potemkin, the ships loyal crew. Apr 14, 2020 in the odessa steps sequence a crowd of friendly citizens has gathered on the steps leading down to the port of odessa to celebrate the victory of the mutinous sailors over the czarist officers on the battleship potemkin, which is now waving the red flag of revolution offshore. Strike, his first featurelength film, was remarkably inspired, bubbling over with creative camera placements and brisk editing. Sergei eisenstein was commissioned by the soviet government in 1925 to direct a film commemorating the 20th anniversary of the unsuccessful revolution of 1905. And if strike was eisensteins initial explosion of youthful creativity, battleship potemkin would present an artist already in his maturity, confidently picking and choosing just the right techniques for his art. Because battleship potemkin is an appeal to fellowfeeling and collective action, it is only right that the restoration work creates a more immersive film, one that places no barriers between a. Among them, a small boy runs down the staircase with his mother. Other methods of montage style include but are not limited to rhythmic montage an editing style based on dramatic timing best exemplified by battleship potemkin s odessa steps scene, discontinuity manipulating the time and space of a scene to disorient the audience or for some other thematic purpose, and audiovisual montage, after the advent of sound film. There was a general strike and bombs were thrown b. Battleship potemkin soviet montage style gradesaver. Today those theories are film school 101, and battleship potemkins technique is talked about more than its political portent.
Battleship potemkin, soviet silent film, released in 1925, that was director. Analysis of techniques used in battleship potemkin. It was my privilege a few months ago to be present at two private screenings of. Eisenstein, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Some filmmakers took the style to extremes that even eisenstein could not envision. Editing that invisible art of the cinema became fully realized in battleship potemkin, the silent russian masterpiece from director sergei eisenstein for better and for worse from the deft slicing and dicing of footage by longtime martin scorsese editor thelma schoonmaker to the incoherent jumbling in your average michael bay film eisenstein revealed how a true movie is a. Montage editing is a style of film editing which, speaking generally, use the act of editing as a central artistic tool of film as opposed to a mere technical procedure.
Aug 08, 2016 he used the his new theory of montage to explore the themes of tsarists oppression in the battleship potemkin the battleship potemkin is a 1925 soviet silent film directed by sergei eisenstein and. Nov 02, 2009 i first thought the battleship potemkin 1925 would be a boring film because of my prejudice. Enraged with the deplorable conditions on board the armored cruiser potemkin, the ships loyal crew contemplates the unthinkable mutiny. Battleship potemkin is one of the true masterpieces from the silent film era thanks to the innovative editing techniques used by director sergei eisenstein. Morale in russias black sea fleet had long been at rockbottom lows, spurred on by defeats in. When battleship potemkin was released in moscow back in 1925 it was described by some as the greatest film of all time.
The truelife potemkin was an imperial russian battleship and the subject of a 1905 mutiny. Techniques used in battleship potemkin by ruth eagle on prezi. I anticipate big blockbuster hits and save up the money for the admission at the movie theater. In the realistic films that he undertook, however, such a technique is. Feb 10, 2020 strike, his first featurelength film, was remarkably inspired, bubbling over with creative camera placements and brisk editing. When the battleship potemkin was first shown in moscow in. The cinematography had a positive affect on the way i viewed this film, as a silent film, cinematography played a. Battleship potemkin by sergei eisenstein film studies essay. In the odessa steps sequence a crowd of friendly citizens has gathered on the steps leading down to the port of odessa to celebrate the victory of the mutinous sailors over the czarist officers on the battleship potemkin, which is now waving the red flag of revolution offshore. The film is based on the mutiny of russian sailors against their tyrannical superiors.
Griffith had used a decade earlier and revolutionized film with his now famous montages. Battleship potemkin what they thought battleship potemkin received its premire at the bolshoi theatre, moscow on december 21st 1925. Sergei eisenstein effectively pioneered many editing techniques that are now ubiquitous in modern cinema. Eisenstein originally envisioned this project as an eightpart episodic film which would cover events including the potemkin mutiny, a famous railworkers strike, battles in the russojapanese war, the. Considered one of the greatest films of all time, it is particularly famous for its exploration of film techniques such as montage, as well as for its use of film as a propaganda tool. The editing techniques in in casablanca and battleship. Few films have made an impact on the history of cinema like sergei eisensteins battleship potemkin bronenosets potyomkin. Battleship potemkin 1925 is a typical illustration of a film that led to become a sign for revolution. One can argue how this particular work attempted to form a new cinema, and through critically looking at the films themeideology, narrative structure, filmmaking techniques and editing montage, with paying close attention to the communist ideology, imagism, marxism, futurism, the. How does the cinematography positively or negatively affect your opinion of this film.
Analysis of techniques used in battleship potemkin 1. Methods of montage in battleship potemkin film studies essay. Sep 26, 2018 battleship potemkin 1925 was one of the earliest films to use cinematic editing techniques such as the montage and the kuleshov effect. It presents a dramatized version o the mutiny that occurred in 1905 when the crew o the roushie battleship potemkin rebelled against thair officers o the. His fallen body is positioned in such a way that it lies perpendicular to the line of the steps, the line of the boys body creating a graphic conflict with the line of the steps. Battleship potemkin is no longer considered the greatest film ever made, but it is obligatory for anyone interested in film history, and the other night in that smalltown parking lot i got a sense, a stirring, of the buried power it still contains, awaiting a call. However the more i look into it, i found it more interesting and therefore i am going to spend a little bit of time discuss about it. Battleship potemkin 1925 a film by sergei eisenstein. Battleship potemkin would be eisensteins most critically acclaimed and influential film.
Battleship potemkin, soviet silent film, released in 1925, that was director sergey m. Battleship potemkin, released at the end of 1925 as only sergei eisensteins second fulllength film, was an elaboration on the reallife mutiny which took place on the battleship potemkin in june 1905. While i am sure we are all indebted to battleship potemkin for its illustration of heretofore unseen film techniques, the film itself is actually rather dull. Potemkin is one of the most famous films in cinema history. The legendary filmmaker behind battleship potemkin talks inspiration, innovation, and the key to great cinematography. How sergei eisenstein used montage to film the unfilmable. Michael mcvey vma 115 history of the moving image prof. Battleship potemkin sometimes rendered as battleship potyomkin, is a 1925 soviet silent film. The sites consensus reads, a technical masterpiece, battleship potemkin is soviet cinema at its finest, and its montage editing techniques remain influential to this day.
Suddenly, from out of nowhere, lines of government soldiers appear at the top of the. A soviet propaganda film from the silent era, it tells the story of the failed russian revolution of 1905 through the events that happened on the battleship potemkin and in odessa. This mutiny served as the flashpoint for a wider, abortive uprising that foreshadowed the eventual. Eisenstein originally envisioned this project as an eightpart episodic film which would cover events including the potemkin mutiny, a famous railworkers strike, battles in the russojapanese war, the massacre of armenians in 190507. Before the russian revolution of 1917, there was a failed attempt to overthrow the royal government in 1905.
Battleship potemkin 1925 full movie in hd english subtitles. The odessa steps scene was so beautiful and artistic it truly felt like a piece of art. Dec 08, 2016 a technical masterpiece, battleship potemkin is soviet cinema at its finest, and its montage editing techniques remain influential to this day. Battleship potemkin study guide contains a biography of sergei m. Battleship potemkin film by eisenstein 1925 britannica. Techniques used in battleship potemkin by ruth eagle on.
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