The circle and the line : Eisenstein, Florensky, and Russian orthodoxy

Abstract

The great Russian filmmaker and film theorist Sergei Eisenstein has become the subject of renewed interest a century after his birth. A decade after the fall of the Soviet Union, with fresh material on his life and art now consequently available, a more complex picture of Eisenstein is emerging. This collection—featuring the work of major film theorists and Russian scholars—offers the first post–Soviet reconsideration of Eisenstein’s contribution to world cinema. The contributors address themes previously avoided by Soviet critics, such as sexuality, religion, gender, and politics, in The Battleship Potemkin, October, Alexander Nevsky, and Ivan the Terrible. Of particular concern here is Eisenstein’s struggle with Soviet censorship, which resulted in a tenuous balance between the pressures of the state and his goals as an artist. Essays explore the manner in which Eisenstein’s later theoretical writings reveal continuity with the better-known earlier work, issues of historical revisionism, and the relationship between autobiography and the films. Eisenstein at 100 presents a rich and profound picture of Eisenstein the man, the director, and the film theorist.