Battleship Potemkin

Rating: Null/10 (9 April 2008)

Battleship Potemkin, The (1925)
**** (out of 4)
Eisenstein's masterpiece film tells the 1905 Russian naval mutiny in five parts. It goes without saying that this is one of the greatest films ever made and one of the most beautiful as well. The most famous thing about this movie is the Odessa Steps sequence, which is clearly one of the most memorable scenes in film history but the rest of the movie never really gets the credit it deserves. I think the second part of the film with the mutiny on board the ship is just as impressive and there are some of the most suspenseful scenes in film history here. The execution sequence is incredibly suspenseful as we get closer to the sailors execution after they are put under a tarp. As for the Odessa Steps sequence, I'm really not sure I could say anything that hasn't already been said countless times. This massacre sequence is so brutal and shocking that it hasn't lost any of its impact over the past eighty-years. How Eisenstein was able to get all these extras is something remarkable on its own and it's easy to see why this film was banned in several countries because government officials thought this sequence could lead to riots. The technical beauty of this film is unlike many others as every single shot is like great poetry right on the screen. The cinematography is top notch from start to finish and really makes this movie seem like a documentary of the events.