Padenie dinastii Romanovykh (1927)

Director:

Esfir Shub

Writers:

V.I. Lenin (letter A Letter from Afar)
Esfir Shub (writer)

Genre:

Documentary

Plot:

Using archival news footage, Esfir Shub pieces together a chronology of Russia, from 1913 to 1917. She introduces leaders of the Duma...

Plot Keywords:

Russian Revolution | Compilation

Cast

Mikhail Alekseyev	...	Himself (with Tsar Nicholas) (archive footage)
Alexei Brusilov	...	Himself (consults with another officer) (archive footage)
Nikolai Chkheidze	...	Himself (chairman, 1st session, Petrograd Soviet) (archive footage)
Emperor Franz Josef	...	Himself (reviews troops) (archive footage)
Vera Figner	...	Herself (People's Will Party, in open car) (archive footage)
Aleksandr Guchkov	...	Himself (archive footage)
Iliodor	...	Himself (monk, Rasputin's rival) (archive footage) (as Illiodor)
Aleksandr Izvolsky	...	Himself (ambassador to France, gets into carriage) (archive footage)
Joseph Joffre	...	Himself (with Millerand) (archive footage)
Kaiser Wilhelm II	...	Himself (reviews troops, bigger fur collar than other officers) (archive footage)
Governor of Kaluga	...	Himself (governor, Kaluga, with wife, dog, servants) (archive footage)
Aleksandr Kerensky	...	Himself (doffs fur hat, shakes hands of soldiers) (archive footage)
King George V	...	Himself (in ceremonial carriage, not visible) (archive footage)
Aleksandr Kolchak	...	Himself (aboard ship) (archive footage)
P.V. Krupensky	...	Himself (archive footage)
V.I. Lenin	...	Himself (speech before crowd, on train with well-wishers) (archive footage)
V.A. Maklakov	...	Himself (archive footage)
Alexandre Millerand	...	Himself (French War Minister, with Joffre) (archive footage)
Paul Milyukov	...	Himself (archive footage)
Gospodin Nekrasov	...	Himself (archive footage)
Raymond Poincaré	...	Himself (visits Russia just before War begins) (archive footage)
Vladimir Purishkevich	...	Himself (archive footage)
Fyodor Rodichev	...	Himself (archive footage)
Mikhail Rodzyanko	...	Himself (archive footage)
V.V. Shulgin	...	Himself (archive footage)
Vladimir Sukhomlinov	...	Himself (in plain field uniform coat) (archive footage)
Gospodin Suvorin	...	Himself (leader, monarchist press, Vremya) (archive footage)
Irakli Tseretelli	...	Himself (leader, Mensheviks) (archive footage)
N.A. Vtorov	...	Himself (owner, Vtorovsky armaments factory) (archive footage)
Nikolai Yudenich	...	Himself (signs papers) (archive footage)

Also Known As:

The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty

Country:

Soviet Union | USA

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Certification:

Finland:(Banned) (1930) | Finland:S (1971)

Company:

Sovkino

Movie Connections:

Edited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: Toutes les histoires (1988) (V)

Exposing some of the myths of the Russian Revolution

Fascinating collection of footage from the years 1913-17 focusing on the Russian Revolution. With an introduction by a Russian historian and cultural expert, it exposed a number of myths about the revolution and in particular, the Bolsheviks.

With this gentleman providing a commentary over the footage that's happening and explaining the propaganda behind not only this film, but the three films that I'd seen by Eisentein, presenting them in a completely different light. Filmwise it wasn't anything special, however the informed commentary was riveting and helps you to understand a bit more about what actually happened, even if it only touches the surface.

Watched in conjunction with Eisenstein's October 1917, Strike and Battleship Potemkin, these are essential viewing.