Film of the Day: 43
The Battleship Potemkin (1925)
There have been numerous mutiny's in history that have been immortalised in film. There was the famous Mutiny on the Bounty (which has been done 3 times with Clark Gable, Marlon Brando & Mel Gibson), The Caine Mutiny with Humphrey Bogart and the Russian classic The Battleship Potemkin. The film that became one of the most influential propaganda films of all time.
Legendary director Sergei M. Eisenstein (one of Russia's most most proudest directors along side Andrei Tarkovsky) based his film on the mutiny that took place today at 4am in 1905 on the Battleship Potemkin. After the Ismal returns and brings the Potemkin rotten meat with maggots, the sailors of course refuse to eat the food.
They are brought on desk and ordered to eat the rotten meat, yet only 12 sailors obey. The others are then threatened by 20 armed soldiers.30 sailors are then ordered to be executed but the revolutionaries then rise and steal the guns from the armoury and thus begins the mutiny.
This is not only one of the most remarkable silent films I have ever seen, but one of the most powerful, influential and unforgettable films I have ever seen. It has inspired many film-makers and not only is the story unforgettable, but as film-making goes, it is down right groundbreaking.
From the shocking images of the school teacher running to the screen her, mouth open with a bullet through her glasses and in her eye. To the falling of the baby stroller down the Odessa Steps, a scene that inspired Brian De Palma in The Untouchables.
It also inspired films such as Brazil and The Godfather. And of course the amazing wide shot of the massacre on the Odessa Steps. This is arguably the most powerful and iconic scene of the entire film.
The film even inspired the painter Francis Bacon with it's audacious images and has been known to be one of the greatest films ever made since its release, it is an experience that even today will leave you in awe. Empire magazines ranked the film #3 in "The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema" in 2010. For me it is not just a film that you watch, it is a great piece of history that must be studied over and over again.
Click here for the trailer
.
Legendary director Sergei M. Eisenstein (one of Russia's most most proudest directors along side Andrei Tarkovsky) based his film on the mutiny that took place today at 4am in 1905 on the Battleship Potemkin. After the Ismal returns and brings the Potemkin rotten meat with maggots, the sailors of course refuse to eat the food.
They are brought on desk and ordered to eat the rotten meat, yet only 12 sailors obey. The others are then threatened by 20 armed soldiers.30 sailors are then ordered to be executed but the revolutionaries then rise and steal the guns from the armoury and thus begins the mutiny.
This is not only one of the most remarkable silent films I have ever seen, but one of the most powerful, influential and unforgettable films I have ever seen. It has inspired many film-makers and not only is the story unforgettable, but as film-making goes, it is down right groundbreaking.
From the shocking images of the school teacher running to the screen her, mouth open with a bullet through her glasses and in her eye. To the falling of the baby stroller down the Odessa Steps, a scene that inspired Brian De Palma in The Untouchables.It also inspired films such as Brazil and The Godfather. And of course the amazing wide shot of the massacre on the Odessa Steps. This is arguably the most powerful and iconic scene of the entire film.
The film even inspired the painter Francis Bacon with it's audacious images and has been known to be one of the greatest films ever made since its release, it is an experience that even today will leave you in awe. Empire magazines ranked the film #3 in "The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema" in 2010. For me it is not just a film that you watch, it is a great piece of history that must be studied over and over again.
Click here for the trailer
.
Remarkable clear remake of the old original!
ReplyDeleteMutiny films are not that abundant, although the second Mutiny on the Bounty comes straight to mind! That was a good film as well, but this one from 1925 was unheard of to me!
Good research on the subject!