Despite—or because of—revolutions, wars, and severe censorship, Russia has produced some of the world’s most original and powerful cinematography. Through the eyes of the camera and of those uncompromising artists who stood behind it, we will look at facets of Russian society, politics, and culture.
Our survey will take in several major directors from Russian film history, from the daringly experimental 1920s to our own time. We will analyse films in connection with selected great themes of Russian literature and cultural history: evil, death, redemption, love, war, patriotism, and fate. Among the directors we will consider are Sergei Eisenstein, Andrei Tarkovsky, and Mikhail Kalatozov.