Thursday, January 15, 2009
Ivan the Great
The first thing that came to mind was how Eisenstein made this movie during such a hard time. It really surprised me how good it was. First thing I want to do is compare the silent films and sound films of Eisenstein. I still think the films are a lot better with sound so you don’t have to second guess yourself to what the characters are saying. Also I notice that this film was much slower compared to Battleship. Battleship really didn’t have a slow moment in it. It was always at different camera angles and up to speed. This film was slower and focused more on the scene. Sound could have played a role in that. Also it could have something to do with the audience, keeping them entertained. One thing I notice during the movie is that Eisenstein like to use shadows in this film. There was one part where there was a shadow on the wall on Ivan’s body and the globe/circle thing he had. I considered the circle to be like the world. The circle on the wall was much bigger than he was on the wall. Also when Ivan’s servants I guess where leaving the room, Ivan’s head was much bigger compared to the servants who were leaving. Over all this movie was better than I expected it to be.
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And you wouldn't believe how much better it gets with repeated viewings. The shadows in the film really are quite striking and I often wonder whether Ivan's shadow is meant to suggest and show how his power and responsibilities go far beyond his mere person. It's particularly neat when he walks towards the entry way and the shadow shrinks and shrinks until it meets his body when he leaves the room. Almost as if to suggest that as he enters that private compartment to be with his ailing wife, all of his tsarist power is at that moment irrelevant.
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