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Sunrise
9May12
Eisenstein's graphic conflict is so strong when there is no reliance upon internal conflict, although with the removal of political, symbolic and physical conflicts the drama clearly needs the push of a storyteller (rather than an essayist). Incredible moments of dramatic jolt in which backgrounded and large compositional elements ("Church," mountains) clash with variously challenging concepts of the Russian people!
Michael Convery
27Jan12
The emotional and technical power of the film outshines the littered scenes of propaganda and insulting childishness, which, hopefully, might be irony on the part of Eisenstein. For me, though, the Teutonic knights dominate the film, even as they lay silent on the ice.
Howard Orr
2Jan12
A curious pantomime of a film, as phoney and kitsch as any Disney film, yet with Eisenstein's primal power to impress, thanks to his grounding in the brutal visual simplicty of silent cinema. To think that once I thought this was better than his "Ivan The Terrible"...
msmichel
29Nov11
Essential cinema. Rousing, jaw dropping masterpiece from director Eisenstein that not only utilizes his key characters but well manipulates his cast of thousands in capturing incredible images. The film certainly doesn't hide its' propagandist elements but revels in them. The battle footage captured was unparalled at the time. Beautiful cinematography by Eduard Tisse well planned and designed by Eisenstein.
arthurrimbaud
30Sep11
Since I am historian, I can not evaluate this film. it is completely falsification of facts, totally product of propoganda. nevertheless, on the cinematographical level it is grate, but not as good as potjomkin, of course.
Matthew_Lucas
31Aug11
Stalin brought Eisenstein out of his Siberian exile to make this propaganda piece about Russian hero, Alexander Nevsky. The result is a grand, if occasionally goofy epic, featuring a rousing score by Prokofiev. The baldly propagandistic elements can be laughable at times, even though Eisenstein knows how to make the heart pound and the spirit soar, and the final battle on the ice is undeniably fantastic.
Matthew_Lucas
15May11
I often wonder what Russian filmmaking would have been like had the Bolshevik Revolution never happened, forcing its artists to only make films in such a manner as to glorify Communism. Even camera styles had to be "non-bourgeois.". But I've always had a soft spot for Soviet propaganda films, and Eisenstein in particular, and this historical epic, while a bit hokey and heavy handed at times, is undeniably glorious.
Allan
20Jan11
It looked incredibly ugly, it's music was rubbish, it's dialogue was absurd, it's acting ridiculous, it's battle scenes seemed amateurish with no scale, the pacing and narrative seemed slapdash - just an utter mess. On top of that it was hyper-nationalistic, sexist and lacked any depth whatsoever (the explicit Hitler allegory hold no depth) , for example the rousing of the peasants had no intelligence whatsoever.
Renee Hirshfield
20Nov10
The propaganda in this film has to be understood within the historical context of its 1938 release date in the Soviet Union, when the territorial threat posed by Nazi Germany loomed large. Substitute Nazis for the Teutonic Knights, and ALEXANDER NEVSKY becomes something more than a thrillingly filmed and scored (Prokofiev!) chronicle of a 13th century event.
Dainel Poeira
18Apr10
The shabby propaganda on most Eisenstein films is more contained on this one, making it a quite enjoyable epic film even today. The techniques are very refined, a must-see for movie makers and film historians.
All Is Grace
23Mar10
Honestly guys, I hated the story... It's just propaganda. But that doesn't mean I can't understand Eisenstein's techniques... 3 stars just for the techniques of film making and editing.
Daniel S.
3Dec09
I wonder whether Sergei Eisenstein’s films are still studied in movie classes like in the 70’s. The Soviet director was then THE director to admire according to our left-wing teachers. I didn’t like these films and never watched them since. So, when I decided to take a look at the restored version of Alexander Nevsky yesterday, I really didn’t know what to expect. Well, it was not so terrible after all. I appreciated Eisenstein’s flair for the perfect editing, the German army, Prokofiev’s musical score and the performance of Nikolai Cherkasov as Nevsky but I’m still reluctant in front of the propaganda tone of the film, the folk songs and the clumsy attempts to deliver lyrical scenes. An interesting film that movie lovers should absolutely watch but not a favorite of mine.
The Mayor Of Hell
6Jul09
I guess what really stood out for me in this movie were the images of the German army and their gnarly armor. The ice battle was great too but damn those German's were wicked looking. The weird love triangle...not so much