Alexander Nevsky; Battleship Potemkin; Ivan the Terrible Pt. 1; Ivan the Terrible Pt. 2

White Star Video, a division of Kultur, deserves a nod for making prints from negatives which were remastered in the Soviet Union during the late 70s and early 80s of these four classic films from world-renowned director Sergei Eisenstein. Since all four are in the public domain, there are a number of fair to atrocious copies on other labels available. Moving chronologically, Battleship Potemkin is one of the milestones of early cinema, advancing as it did Eisenstein's at the time revolutionary technique of montage (basically, editing). The film celebrates the overthrow of the czarist regime by focusing on one particular incident--the mutiny on board the battleship Potemkin. Beginning with establishing scenes that convey to the viewer the brutal living conditions aboard the vessel, the action advances when the crew refuses to eat the maggot-infested rotten meat that they are regularly served. When the mutineers are ordered to be shot, the whole ship revolts. Sailing into the town of Odessa, the crewmen rouse the local citizens, until the military comes in to quell the uprising--a veritable massacre on the stone steps leading down to the beach (a much imitated scene--most recently in Brian de Palma's 1987 film The Untouchables--forever emblazoned in film students' minds as the "Odessa Steps Sequence"). Not only does Battleship Potemkin represent a turning point in the history of cinema, it is a horrifyingly effective action story that is all the more interesting because Eisenstein (in true Marxist fashion) makes the mass, not an individual, his leading character. A stirring Shostakovich score has been added to this silent classic. Alexander Nevsky is an historical drama set in the 13th century when Teutonic Knights from Germany invaded Russia with impunity. When the town of Norovgod is threatened, the people seek out Prince Alexander Nevsky, a great military leader turned fisherman. Nevsky accepts the challenge and launches a brilliant military offensive against the invaders--the centerpiece of the film. Using a cast of thousands, Eisenstein creates a realistic portrait of the chaos of war (especially in a powerful sequence filmed on the ice). Shortly after its release, the film was withdrawn by Stalin (because of his signing of a non-aggression pact with Germany). Ivan the Terrible (parts one and two) chronicles the rise to power of Ivan Grozny, the 16th century Muscovy prince who united Russia and became the first Tsar. In Eisenstein's concluding work, Part One opens with the crowning of the Tsar, and his early military victories against the Tartans, all the while fighting the powerful influence of the aristocratic boyars. Part Two pits Ivan head to head with the boyars, after the murder of his wife Anastasia. His revenge is played during a bizarre banquet scene which abruptly shifts to color for the festivities and the unfolding of Ivan's plot against the pretender to his throne. Although completed in 1946, Ivan the Terrible, Part Two was prohibited from release by Stalin, and did not see the light of day until 1958, a full decade after Eisenstein's death. All of the prints used here are very good, although the subtitles in both Alexander Nevsky and Ivan the Terrible are sometimes difficult, sometimes impossible to read. Still, they are the best that's currently available at a very reasonable price. All four videos are highly recommended.(R. Pitman)