One important feature of early cinema was its ability to record history in ways that previously weren’t possible, thus allowing future generations to experience the early 20th Century with more authenticity than events recorded with only still pictures or written word. And even after cameras, for one reason or another, failed to be at the right time during important events, staging subsequent reenactments was relatively easy, resulting in moving images that looked as authentic as the real thing. Probably the best known such example can be found in October: Ten Days That Shook the World, 1928 Soviet silent epic written and directed by Sergei Eisenstein and Grigori Alexandrov.
The film was commissioned by Soviet government as part of official celebrations marking the 10th anniversary of October Revolution. The plot begins with February Revolution or the downfall of immensely unpopular regime of the last Russian Czar Nicholas II. It is replaced by Provisional Government which, contrary to the will of the people, doesn’t want to end Russian participation in increasingly unpopular war with Central Powers nor it has inclination to provide welfare and land reforms Russian workers and peasants demand. In April 1917 Lenin (played by Vasili Nikandrov), leader of the Bolshevik faction of Russian Social Democrat Party arrives to Petrograd (today’s St. Peterburg) to organise his supporters for eventual taking of power. In July 1917 spontaneous and peaceful demonstration is brutally crushed by forces loyal to Provisional Government, which is now led by vain and incompetent Alexander Kerensky (played by Nikolai Popov). Shortly afterwards Kerensky is forced to rely to workers’ militia and forces loyal to revolutionary Soviets in order to protect Petrograd from General Kornilov who, with British-supplied tanks, intends to return the Czar’s regime and secure Russian participation in war. Bolshevik agitators manage to infiltrate the ranks of Kornilov’s “Wild Division”, manned by soldiers from North Caucasus, and turn them to revolutionary side. With Provisional Government weakened, Bolsheviks finally decide to start armed uprising, which would coincide with Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets of Workers’ and Soldier’s Deputies taking place in Smolny. On October 24th (November 6th according to Gregorian calendar) Provisional Government attempts to stave inevitable and barricades itself in Winter Palace, former residence of Czar. After a tense standoff masses of revolutionaries finally storm the Winter Palace, arrest most members of Provisional Government and Bolshevik-dominated Congress becomes sole authority over the country.
October wasn’t the first spectacular reenactment of the October Revolution. On November 7th 1920 Russian Symbolist playwright Nikolai Evreinov has staged Storming of the Winter Palace, mass open-air play involving hundreds of various artists and thousands of extras, performed for the third anniversary of the event near the actual Winter Palace (with Dimitri Tiomkin, who would later write soundtrack for Hollywood Westerns, participating in the project). Version devised by Eisenstein and his associate Grigori Aleksandrov was, however, more ambitious, more elaborate, more spectacular but also with more emphasis on authenticity. Eisenstein was fortunate to have many of the participants of Revolution around and many of them more than willing to relive their great moment of glory in front of the cameras. That included Nikolai Podvolsky, former leader of Bolshevik Military Organisation who actually planned, organised and carried out the coup; in the film he appears playing himself. Other important historical personalities were for various reasons unavailable and Eisenstein was using actors instead. Most of his casting choices were unconventional; instead of professional actors he used ordinary people. That included unknown worker named Vassili Nikandrov chosen for the role of Lenin on the sole account of physical resemblance. With possible exception of Kerensky, there aren’t that many grand personalities. Like with Strike and Battleship Potemkin, Eisenstein took clear preference of collective over individual and the real protagonists is either the mass or Bolshevik Party as force that guides it. And it is a mass that was at Eisenstein’s disposal. The final scenes of storming of White Palace involved over 11,000 extras and, during the actual shooting, more people were injured than during the actual storming itself.
In October Eisenstein again uses his montage theory in order to create strong emotional response and reconstruct the past in line with official Soviet ideology with crude black-and-white characterisation. Good examples can be found in the beginning, when February Revolution is illustrated with images of Czar Nicholas’ statue being torn down. Later in the film Eisenstein references himself with massacre of July protesters matches famous Odessa Steps scene in Potemkin. Some of Eisenstein’s attempts to convey message would make audience baffled, like the images of Buddhist, Hindu and Aztec statues mixed with Christian iconography – apparently Eisenstein’s attempt to portray Russian Orthodox Christianity, which officially atheist Soviet regime suppressed, as something as “primitive” as those “strange” non-European religions. Other details would mean very little to audience not familiar with that chapter of history, although they might show it to be fascinating and unusual, like Winter Palace being defended by “Death” Battalion of female soldiers, formed up by Provisional Government for war propaganda purposes. October is film made for people already familiar with its subject matter, so there is very little context and modern viewers might ask themselves what was whole revolutionary fuss all about. Eisenstein (who would had to edit Trotsky’s character out of the film because Stalin kicking his archrival out of Party) nevertheless delivered an interesting and strong film which, despite some of its limitations and the embellishments of certain details, still represents one of the more successful and intriguing docudramas in history of cinema. Many of its scenes were later used in documentaries and are often mistaken for actual documentary footage of the period. The score, which was originally written by Austrian composer Edmund Meisel, was replaced by score by Dmitri Shostakovich during 1966 restoration, which also added some minor sound effects.
RATING: 7/10 (+++)
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