Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotesOverview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduleAwards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage boardPlot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotesFun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQOther Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDeskPromotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo galleryExternal Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsZemlya (1930) More at IMDbPro »
Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer:
Aleksandr Dovzhenko (writer)
Release Date:
17 October 1930 (USA) more
Plot:
In the peaceful countryside, Vassily opposes the rich kulaks over the coming of collective farming. full summary | add synopsis
NewsDesk:
DVD Spotlight: 9/3.
(From GreenCine. 3 September 2008, 10:45 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
mind-bogglingly great more (28 total)
Cast
(Complete credited cast)| Stepan Shkurat | ... | Opanas (as S. Shkurat) | |
| Semyon Svashenko | ... | Vasili 'Basil' Opanas (as S. Svashenko) | |
| Yuliya Solntseva | ... | Vasili's sister (as Yu. Solntseva) | |
| Yelena Maksimova | ... | Natalya, Vasili's fiancee (as Ye. Maksimova) | |
| Nikolai Nademsky | ... | Semyon 'Simon' Opanas (as N. Nademsky) | |
| Ivan Franko | ... | Arkhip Whitehorse, Khoma's father (as I. Franko) | |
| Pyotr Masokha | ... | Khoma 'Thomas' Whitehorse (as P. Masokha) | |
| Vladimir Mikhajlov | ... | Village priest (as V. Mikhajlov) | |
| Pavel Petrik | ... | Young party-cell leader (as P. Petrik) | |
| P. Umanets | ... | Chairman of the village Farm Soviet | |
| Ye. Bondina | ... | Farm girl | |
| Luka Lyashenko | ... | Young Kulak (as L. Lyashenko) |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Земля (Soviet Union: Russian title)
Earth (USA)
Soil
more
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
75 min | USA:73 min (1991 Kino video)
Country:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Finland:K-16 (1956) | Finland:S (1972)
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
This film was voted one of the ten greatest films of all time by a group of 117 film historians at the 1958 Brussels World Fair. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Life as a Dream (2007) (V) more
FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (28 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Zemlya (1930)Recommendations
|
|
|
|
|
| Antonia | Novecento | The Good Earth | Die Blechtrommel | Fratello sole, sorella luna |
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Drama section | IMDb Soviet Union section |
| Add this title to MyMovies |

Now I regret all the times I've railed about how propaganda is synonymous with contempt for the audience. It is sometimes hard to know what to say about a movie when it is a 'best of all time list' warhorse, but not this time. I have never - ever - seen a movie with a more deliberate, or surer, sense of rhythm. Two sequences that are nothing but long montages of fruit are absolutely riveting. A man sits, re-evaluating his world view, and because it takes a long time to do that we fade to black THREE times over about a minute, without him moving or changing position. This glacial tempo lulls us, so that Dovzhenko can jolt us with the arrival of a speedy tractor; or a collectivo's joyous dance through the dust over several lengthy wide shots is disrupted by his abrupt murder. Then the movie climaxes with an unbelievable crescendo where at least FIVE events are montaged, in perfectly comprehensible rhetorical construction. The movie begins with a death scene whose understated acting is mind-boggling even now, forget 1930; the final shot balances all the anti-church rhetoric with an image that is absolutely redemptive and spiritual, only the point is that redemption is found in LIFE. I'm not being pompous, this movie actually functions on that level. It achieves poetry AND propaganda in a way that I've never ever experienced before. It kind of reminds me of Brian Wilson's "Smile" in its modest grandeur, so true that it's painful, but so f***ing great that you want to experience it again and again. You can get it for free at the St. Catharines Library.