Ivan the Terrible, Part I

Ivan the Terrible, Part I

NR 1944 · 95 min · ★ 7.3 · Drama, History

Set during the early part of his reign, Ivan faces betrayal from the aristocracy and even his closest friends as he seeks to unite the Russian people. Sergei Eisenstein's final film, this is the first part of a three-part biopic of Tsar Ivan IV of Russia, which was never completed due to the producer's dissatisfaction with Eisenstein's attempts to use forbidden experimental filming techniques and excessive cost overruns. The second part was completed but not released for a decade after Eisenstein's death and a change of heart in the USSR government toward his work; the third part was only in its earliest stage of filming when shooting was stopped altogether.

Directed by Sergei Eisenstein · Written by Sergei Eisenstein

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Our CinemaOur Cinema · 1940
Our Cinema
★ 9.01940
MovieDocumentary
Eisenstein’s Mexican Film: Episodes for StudyEisenstein’s Mexican Film: Episodes for Study · 1955
Eisenstein’s Mexican Film: Episodes for Study
★ 8.51955
MovieDocumentary
"Eisenstein journeyed to Mexico in late 1930 to begin shooting a film. With backing provided by Upton and Mary Craig Sinclair, the great Soviet auteur planned to make an epoch-spanning pageant of Mexico’s political history and cultural iconography, moving from the pre-Columbian era through colonization and, finally, revolution ... with the project running over budget the film was shut down. Sinclair eventually deposited the film materials at MoMA in 1953, at which point the scholar Jay Leyda assembled and annotated the shots, ordering them according to the filmmaker’s plans and presenting the images just as they had been shot, unedited ... here one is given the opportunity to attend to Eisenstein in an entirely different way, and aspects that might otherwise be overshadowed come to the fore: the way he works with nonprofessional actors, for example, or the striking mise-en-scène." - MoMA
Battleship PotemkinBattleship Potemkin · 1925
Battleship Potemkin
★ 7.61925
MovieDramaHistory
A dramatized account of a great Russian naval mutiny and a resultant public demonstration, showing support, which brought on a police massacre.
StrikeStrike · 1925
Strike
★ 7.41925
MovieDrama
Workers in a factory in pre-revolutionary Russia go on strike and are met by violent suppression.
Ivan the Terrible, Part II: The Boyars' PlotIvan the Terrible, Part II: The Boyars' Plot · 1958
Ivan the Terrible, Part II: The Boyars' Plot
★ 7.31958
MovieHistoryDrama
This is the second part of a projected three-part epic biopic of Russian Czar Ivan Grozny, undertaken by Soviet film-maker Sergei Eisenstein at the behest of Josef Stalin. Production of the epic was stopped before the third part could be filmed, due to producer dissatisfaction with Eisenstein's introducing forbidden experimental filming techniques into the material, more evident in this part than the first part. As it was, this second part was banned from showings until after the deaths of both Eisenstein and Stalin, and a change of attitude by the subsequent heads of the Soviet government. In this part, as Ivan the Terrible attempts to consolidate his power by establishing a personal army, his political rivals, the Russian boyars, plot to assassinate him.
Alexander NevskyAlexander Nevsky · 1938
Alexander Nevsky
★ 7.11938
MovieDramaHistory
When German knights invade Russia, Prince Alexander Nevsky must rally his people to resist the formidable force. After the Teutonic soldiers take over an eastern Russian city, Alexander stages his stand at Novgorod, where a major battle is fought on the ice of frozen Lake Chudskoe. While Alexander leads his outnumbered troops, two of their number, Vasili and Gavrilo, begin a contest of bravery to win the hand of a local maiden.
Hurray Mexico!Hurray Mexico! · 1932
Hurray Mexico!
★ 7.11932
MovieDocumentary
Unedited film that Sergei Eisenstein, Grigoriy Aleksandrov and Eduard Tisse shot in Mexico 1931-32. This record only represents the 200,000-plus feet of unedited film that Sergei Eisenstein, Grigoriy Aleksandrov and Eduard Tisse shot in Mexico 1931/32 for Mary and Upton Sinclair and three American co-financiers. It was Eisenstein's vision to end up with movie about Mexico in six parts called "Calavera", "Sandunga", "Maguey", "Fiesta", "Soldadera", and "Epilogue". The project was canceled before it was completed due to cost overruns and months-delayed completion, and the producers refused to let Eisenstein attempt to edit anything from the material he had finished after Iosif Stalin called him back to the USSR. From this footage the following pictures were subsequently edited by other hands: Thunder Over Mexico (1933), Eisenstein in Mexico (1933), Death Day (1934), Time in the Sun (1940), and Que Viva Mexico (1979).
October (Ten Days that Shook the World)October (Ten Days that Shook the World) · 1928
October (Ten Days that Shook the World)
★ 6.91928
MovieDramaHistory
Sergei M. Eisenstein's docu-drama about the 1917 October Revolution in Russia. Made ten years after the events and edited in Eisenstein's 'Soviet Montage' style, it re-enacts in celebratory terms several key scenes from the revolution.
¡Qué Viva México!¡Qué Viva México! · 1979
¡Qué Viva México!
★ 6.81979
MovieDocumentaryDrama
Having revolutionized film editing through such masterworks of montage as Potemkin and Strike, Soviet director Sergei Eisenstein emigrated West in hopes of testing the capabilities of the American film industry. Quickly ostracized from Hollywood, Eisenstein, Grigory Alexandrov, and photographer Eduard Tisse (at the urging of author Upton Sinclair) wandered south of the border, where they began filming a highly stylized documentary about the people and volatile social climate of Mexico. Unfortunately, a lack of funds prohibited the film's completion, and the famed director was unable to edit the film. In 1979, by referring to Eisenstein's extensive notes and sketches, Alexandrov assembled the most definitive version of the film; as close to Eisenstein's vision as one is ever likely to see.
Every DayEvery Day · 1929
Every Day
★ 6.81929
Movie
Experimental documentary focusing on a day in the life of city workers, featuring montage sequences and repetition to emphasise the monotony of routine office work.
Thunder Over MexicoThunder Over Mexico · 1933
Thunder Over Mexico
★ 6.71933
MovieDramaDocumentary
As was common in Diaz's Mexico, a young hacienda worker finds his betrothed imprisoned and his life threatened by his master for confronting a hacienda guest for raping the girl. This film is the first of several attempts to make a feature-length motion picture out of the 200,000-plus feet of film shot by Sergei Eisenstein, on photographic expedition in Mexico during 1931-32 for Upton Sinclair and a cadre of private American producer-investors. Silent with music and English intertitles.
Misery and Fortune of WomanMisery and Fortune of Woman · 1930
Misery and Fortune of Woman
★ 6.51930
MovieDramaDocumentary
This film shows contrasting views of women with problematic pregnancies and the outcomes resulting when they seek out a back-alley abortionist, a trained and licensed abortion provider in a clinic, or an obstetrician capable of performing a Caesarian Section. The full film appears to be lost, but shortened versions, including one with dialogue scenes added in Germany in 1935, can be found on the internet. Additionally, Eisenstein's role in making the picture remains unclear: did he direct some or all of it, just edit it, or merely leave it to Alexandrov and Tisse to make? Released in the USA 1930 in a 65 minute (5800 ft.) version with English intertitles and a music track under the title BIRTH.
The General LineThe General Line · 1929
The General Line
★ 6.41929
MovieDrama
Also known as The Old and the New, The General Line illustrates Lenin’s stated imperative that the nation move from agrarian to industrial culture in an epic ode to farm-collectivization progress.
The Disaster in OaxacaThe Disaster in Oaxaca · 1931
The Disaster in Oaxaca
★ 6.21931
MovieDocumentary
Footage of the aftermath of the January 14 1931 earthquake in Oaxaca, Mexico.
Time in the SunTime in the Sun · 1940
Time in the Sun
★ 6.01940
MovieDocumentary
Second attempt to create a feature film out of the 200,000-plus feet of film which Soviet film-maker Sergei Eisenstein shot during 1931-32 in Mexico for American socialist author Upton Sinclair, his wife and a small company of investors. The projected film, to be called "Que Viva Mexico", was never completed due to exhaustion of funds and Stalin's demand that Eisenstein return to the USSR (he had been absent since 1929). The first attempt at editing the footage, in the USA, resulted in "Thunder Over Mexico", released in 1934. In 1940, Marie Seton, from the UK, acquired some of the footage from the Sinclairs in an attempt to make a better cutting according to Eisenstein's skeletal outline for the proposed film. This film has apparently been lost.
Death DayDeath Day · 1934
Death Day
★ 6.01934
MovieDocumentary
During his adventure in Mexico, Sergei Eisenstein made footage of a Mexican "Death Day" celebration for inclusion in his "Que Viva Mexico!" film project. When the 200,000-plus feet of film he eventually exposed in Mexico was first attempted to be made into a feature film, "Thunder Over Mexico", the producers excluded the Death Day material for subsequent compilation as an independent short subject. Silent with music track and explanatory English intertitles.

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