Battleship Potemkin (1925)

In the midst of the Russian Revolution of 1905, the crew of the battleship Potemkin mutiny against the brutal, tyrannical regime of the vessel's officers. The resulting street demonstration in Odessa brings on a police massacre.

Director:

Sergei M. Eisenstein (as S.M. Eisenstein)

Writer:

Nina Agadzhanova (script by) (as N. F. Agadzhanovoy-Shutko)

Stars:

Aleksandr Antonov, Vladimir Barskiy, Grigoriy Aleksandrov

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Aleksandr Antonov	...	Grigory Vakulinchuk
Vladimir Barskiy	...	Commander Golikov
Grigoriy Aleksandrov	...	Chief Officer Giliarovsky
Ivan Bobrov	...	Young Sailor Flogged While Sleeping (as I. Bobrov)
Mikhail Gomorov	...	Militant Sailor
Aleksandr Levshin	...	Petty Officer
N. Poltavtseva	...	Woman With Pince-nez
Konstantin Feldman	...	Student Agitator
Prokhorenko	...	Mother Carrying Wounded Boy
A. Glauberman	...	Wounded Boy
Beatrice Vitoldi	...	Woman With Baby Carriage
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Daniil Antonovich	...	Sailor
Iona Biy-Brodskiy	...	Student (as Brodsky)
Julia Eisenstein	...	Woman with Food for Sailors
Sergei M. Eisenstein	...	Odessa Citizen

Storyline

Based on the historical events the movie tells the story of a riot at the battleship Potemkin. What started as a protest strike when the crew was given rotten meat for dinner ended in a riot. The sailors raised the red flag and tried to ignite the revolution in their home port Odessa.

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Plot Keywords:

year 1905 | 1900s | russian revolution | russian navy | social discontent | 

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Taglines:

The Sensational Russian Film which is astounding all Europe

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Genres:

Drama | History | Thriller | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

The flag seen flying on the ship after the crew had mutinied was white, which is the color of the tsars, but this was done so that it could be hand-painted red on the celluloid, which is the color of communism. Since this is a black-and-white film, if the flag had been red it would have shown up black in the film. The flag was hand-tinted red for 108 frames by director Sergei M. Eisenstein for the film's premier.

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Goofs

In the firing squad scene, just before the mutiny, the ship's priest taps a crucifix upon his right hand, holding it in his left. As the shot cuts to a close-up of the cross, it instantly switches hands.

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Quotes

Grigory Vakulinchuk: Russian prisoners in Japan are fed better than we are! We've had enough rotten meat!
Smirov, the ship doctor: It's good meat. End of discussion!

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Alternate Versions

The 29 April 1926 version, at the Apollo Theater, Berlin, under the auspices of Prometheus Films, was heavily censored under pressure from the Weimar authorities. Nearly a hundred feet of footage was cut (the equivalent of more than 50 shots) as well as a number of title cards. This version became the basis for the copies that traveled to the United States and England, where they were further censored. The Prometheus negative was returned from Germany to the USSR after the Second World War, and became the source for official export prints from 1949 on.

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Connections

Featured in Empire of the Censors (1995)

User Reviews

Outstanding but overrated work. Eisenstein's other work is much more interesting.

The first time I saw Potemkin, I must have been around 12, and I

bet it was the first silent drama I'd seen, after Metropolis. I hated it.

I saw it recently again, along with a couple of other Eisenstein

pictures. While I felt that Strike and October were both superior

films, I really liked Potemkin a lot more.

Now, also I understand more some of the things Eisenstein was

doing with editing and camera work. I would like to point out, to

those who say Eisenstein invented "montage", that D.W. Griffith

was doing the same thing ten years earlier. Extreme close-ups

came around in 1903, with films like The Gay Shoe Clerk.

Tracking shots are in a huge number of films predating this film by

almost a decade (Intolerance, Cabiria). No, Eisenstein did not

invent these visual tools. Nor did he really perfect them (I doubt

anyone has truly done that). What he did was try to utilize them to

create a stirring and powerful cinematic experience, which he

certainly did.

One thing I love about Eisenstein's films is his use of "types",

really distinctive-looking actors. The citizens of Odessa look

fascinating, especially the wealthy-looking woman with the veiled

hat. The ship's creepy-looking, bearded and mustachioed doctor

was very effective as an evil presence just asking to be overthrown.

Eisenstein also provides us with plenty of beefy, sexy sailors,

which you really can't complain about. Those opening scenes are

pretty hot, if you ask me.

So, overall, this is a good film. I like the acting, the camerawork,

the editing. However, I wish film professors would stop showing

the Odessa steps sequence in their classes. Young students with

no understanding of Soviet cinema will watch that and promptly

give up on the genre. The scene feels clumsy and disconnected

today, and plays on the common misperception that all silent film

was overstated gesturing and unrealistic character decisions. At

least they're not showing them Earth (I hope).

Details

Country:

Soviet Union

Language:

None Russian

Release Date:

24 December 1925 (Soviet Union)

Also Known As:

Battleship Potemkin

Filming Locations:

Crimea, Ukraine

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,641, 16 January 2011

Gross USA:

$51,198

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$61,389

Company Credits

Production Co:

Goskino, Mosfilm

Technical Specs

Runtime:

75 min 68 min (DVD) 72 min (Blu-ray)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.25 : 1