A silent classic

Rating: 10/10 (23 September 2011)

There are many films that film fans should try to see at least once and this is one of them. Sergei Eisenstien's 1925 silent classic features the sort of techniques one still sees today but at the time were, if you'll forgive the pun, revolutionary. Set during an uprising against Tsarist oppression in 1905 the crew of the eponymous battleship have had enough of ill treatment and being served soup made from maggot-infested meat is the last straw. They refuse to eat it and the captain orders them to be shot! Luckily for them the firing squad refuses to obey their orders and soon the officers are in the sea and the men are in control of the ship; although not without the loss of the man who inspired their revolt. When the people of Odessa hear what has happened they rally in support of the men, but in one of cinema's most famous scenes many of them including women and children are gunned down on the now famous Odessa steps.
Before I watched this film I must admit I didn't know what to expect; I knew it was a classic but I wasn't so sure that somebody used to modern films where people actually talk could be gripped by a film with only the occasional inter-title to give some idea of what was being said of course I needn't have worried; it is a classic for a reason. The action scenes where they take over the ship and even more so where the Cossacks gun down innocent civilians were more gripping than many of today's action directors could hope for. Being made in the Soviet Union less than ten years after the successful revolution of 1917 it is obviously a propaganda piece but that doesn't matter as the story is gripping and the action is believable. I'd certainly recommend this film to anybody who can cope with the idea of watching a eighty-five year old movie.