Battleship Potemkin (1925)
Directed by Sergei M. Eisenstein

Film Review

There's a certain irony in the fact that a piece of blatant Communist propaganda has become one of the most highly rated and influential films in history.  A landmark of Twentieth Century cinema, Battleship Potemkin was originally commissioned by the Communist Central Committee as part of a cycle of films to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the failed 1905 uprising.  Its director, Sergei Eisenstein, saw this as an ideal opportunity to apply his well-developed theory of montage, and the resulting film - a spectacularly effective fusion of cinematic art and documentary-style reportage - instantly established him as one of the foremost cineastes of his generation.

Eisenstein's montage techniques are now well understood and widely applied by most filmmakers but, when he first began using them in the mid-1920s, they were to revolutionise the art of cinema.  Previously, editing was the pretty mundane process of cut-and-splice by which a film was assembled from a large number of shots, rather like an enormous jigsaw puzzle.  Eisenstein developed editing into an art in its own right - the art of montage - through several techniques which were intended to maximise a film's impact on its spectator.

The most familiar of Eisenstein's montage techniques is rhythmic montage, by which the temporal sense is skewed for a specific purpose.  This is achieved either by having a fast sequence of short shots (so time appears to go more quickly, creating suspense and tension) or by a slow sequence of longer shots, maybe repeating the same shot from different angles (so time appears to be slowing down, inviting inward-reflection).

Another technique which has great importance in Eisenstein's work is dialectic (or intellectual) montage.  Here, two seemingly unrelated images are juxtaposed to create an impression that is not present in these two images.  Dialect theory had a great impact on the thinking of many Communist intellectuals and has been used as a basis for many theories in areas as diverse as psychology, sociology, biology and history.  The fundamental idea of dialectics is that two conflicting forces (thesis and antithesis) will result in something new (the synthesis).  Essentially, things happen as a result of two things bouncing into one another. 

The result of applying these montage techniques is that a film loses its objectivity and becomes a highly subjective art form.  Just as a stylised painting can sometimes trigger a stronger emotional response than a photograph of the same subject, a montage-treated film can have a far greater sense of realism for a spectator, even if it is a less accurate portrayal of reality.  Montage is intended to engage our emotions, and so the experience of watching the film feels richer, more natural, and more likely to change the way we think.  It is not hard to see how useful this would be to the makers of propaganda films.  Film montage is a very effective means of achieving psychological manipulation of the masses.

Battleship Potemkin gives us Eisenstein's most explicit, and most effective, use of his montage techniques.  The film is nothing less than an unfettered celebration of Communist ideology, rejoicing in the power of ordinary workers to change history for their advantage.  As in Eisenstein's earlier film Strike (1925), the hero is not an individual but a collective mass of humanity, unnamed brothers coming together in their millions to overthrow a system that has no legitimacy.  Eisenstein's use of montage makes this an extraordinarily emotional work in which it is impossible for the spectator not to empathise with the revolutionary cause.

The massacre on the Odessa steps is a perfect example of Eisenstein's dialectic montage, and this is probably why it is one of the most memorable sequences ever committed to celluloid (even if it is entirely fictitious).  Shots of women, children and cripples are rapidly inter-cut with shots of the Tsar's armed troops.  Again and again, we see the tormented, fearful faces of the victims, but all we see of their killers are their boots and their guns.  The dialectic is simple but effective.  Innocence versus brutality.  Light versus darkness.  Us versus them.  So powerful is this scene that at the end of it the spectator is left reeling with shock and anger - just as Eisenstein had intended. It was on the strength of this remarkable piece of cinema that the director was commissioned to make another film in honour of the Russian Revolution, October (1928).

Film Synopsis

1905.  Throughout Russia, discontent is spreading amongst the working classes.  The spirit of revolution is in the air.  Aboard a battleship off the coast of Odessa, sailors object to eating the rotten meat they are given.  To quell a mutiny, the officers in command of the ship order marines to open fire on a group of the rebellious sailors.  The marines refuse and a battle between sailors and officers ensues.  Ordinary people in the port of Odessa gather to cheer the victory of the sailors aboard Potemkin - but they are mercilessly gunned down by Tsarist troops.  Armed battleships are then sent in pursuit of Potemkin...