Sarah Scott

SCTSAR002
Eisenstein’s attempt at a new cinema
In Russia in the 19th century peasants are released from slavery under the control of a Tsar with no

democracy, resulting in a revolt in 1905. Sergei Eisenstein’s movie ‘The Battleship Potemkin’ based

on the 1905 revolution was used as a metaphor for the entire Russian revolution. At this stage Russia

was under the influence of Marxist Ideology where the working class sell themselves to make a living

and where conflict in a society produces livelihood. Eisenstein uses a number of filmmaking

techniques to control audiences thought processes through shock. Eisenstein focus is on the masses

rather than the individual to promote the idea of communism. Ultimately Eisenstein’s films serve as

physiological stimulation rather than a narrative device.

The Kuleshov effect commonly called ‘linkage montage’ is where two images are juxtaposed together

to get the audience to create a combined meaning of these images. The audience assumes that the

images are in the same place, this was dubbed ‘creative geography’ by Kuleshov. Although Eisenstein

did not invent the process he called ‘intellectual montage’ it has become the main focus of his

influence in film history. The formula for this process is thesis + antithesis = synthesis. For example in

Battleship Potemkin ‘the bourgeoisie are the thesis clashing with the proletariat as the antithesis to

yield the triumphant progressive as the synthesis of the classless society’ (Shaw, 2003). This process

was opposed to Kuleshov’s and Pudovkin’s ‘linkage montage’ as Eisenstein wanted to emotionally

shock his audiences. Eisenstein often breaks down ‘creative geography’ to confuse and disorientate

the viewer in such a way to control the way they understand the film. He often defies the rules of

editing such as the 180 degree rule. An example of this breaking down can be seen in the Odessa

steps scene where there is a lot of movement. Eisenstein cuts between people running away to
people falling which you only later understand because they are getting shot. The part where the boy

gets shot, Eisenstein cuts between the boy screaming and the mother screaming clearly defying the

180 degree rule here.

‘Eisenstein distinguished between ten different types of dialectical conflict at the level of shot

composition alone, many of which are utilised in the Odessa Steps sequence in Battleship Potemkin’

(Shaw, 2003). These being identified as metric, rhythmic, tonal. Eisenstein believed that editing was

what involved the audience in the film. Metric montage is associated with the running time of the

shot and correlated with the music. ‘Tension is obtained by the effect of mechanical acceleration by

shortening the pieces while preserving the original proportions of the formula. Primitive of the

method: three-quarter-time, march-time, Waltz-time (3/4, 2/4, 1/4, etc.), used by Kuleshov;

degeneration of the method: metric montage using a Measure of complicated irregularity (16/17,

22/57, etc.)’ (Eisenstein, 1988). This can be seen in battleship Potemkin as the tempo increases on

the Odessa steps scene to evoke excitement in the audience. Rhythmic montage is used to show

slower and solemn scenes and edited depending on the length of the clip. ‘Formal tension by

acceleration is obtained here by shortening the pieces not only in accordance with the fundamental

plan, but also by violating this plan. The most affective violation is by the Introduction of material

more intense in an easily distinguished tempo’ (Eisenstein, 1988). The music in battleship Potemkin is

that of a Pavlovian frenzy which constitutes to the rhythm of the Odessa steps scene. The rhythmic

drum of the solders feet is unsynchronized with the cutting and is then transferred onto the similar

sound of the carriage bouncing down the steps. ‘The stepping descent passes into a rolling descent’

(Eisenstein, 1988). Tonal montage is an extension of rhythmic montage. The ‘fog sequence’ in

Battleship Potemkin (after the mass mourning over the body) the scene was based on the emotional

sound of the pieces and constitute to the tone of the sequence. Eisenstein puts together a sequence

of shots of various aspects of the harbor just before dawn. Each shot in the sequence increases in
light as the sun rise and gradually clears the fog. It suggests a long night has passed and finally the

next day has begun with the start of mutiny against czarism.

Eisenstein uses montage to expand time and show us the same action from different viewpoints. In

the Odessa steps scene Eisenstein organizes this scene with his ‘intellectual editing’. There is a lot of

contrast between long shots of the entire steps, and close-ups of individual people (e.g. the woman

who is shot in the eye at the end), the regular change between shots from below (of the people flee

in panic) and from above (the soldiers descending the stairs and firing), the changes of tempo from

frenzied movement (at the start of the sequence) to near-immobility (in the middle of the sequence,

when the mother move towards the troops with her son and the troops halt for a moment), to

frenzied movement again (at the end of the sequence), and the placing of smaller dramas within the

bigger massacre drama (e.g. the baby carriage). The scene also juxtaposes shots of longer and shorter

duration as well as alternating camera angles. All the editing techniques mentioned are a way in

which Eisenstein wanted to highlight the effect of the masses. Eisenstein wanted a communist

revolution for the Bolshevik party in which all the masses would share equally. Battleship Potemkin

was aimed at shocking the viewers into realising the power of the masses. Thus it was a form of

Propaganda.

Another editing technique that Eisenstein uses is that of Dialectical editing. This is a process by where

two shots are combined to create a new metaphorical meaning. There is no special links as the shots

are purely intellectual. It creates an idea for conventional narrative and thus requires ‘creative

geography.’ Creative geography is part of the Kuleshove effect and is when the audience creates the

meanings of the movie. It contributes to the narrative to create a smooth audience experience. An

example of this can be the image of the three lion’s statues to show the beginning of rebellion and

anger.
Eisenstein is also seen to use the method of overlapping editing in Battleship Potemkin. Overlapping

editing is disruptive, slightly jarring and draws attention to the particular motion being repeated.

After the scene where the men refuse to eat the rotten meat, there is a scene of the three sailors

washing dishes. One of them realizes that the plate he is washing has the hypocritical inscription

“Give us this day our daily bread”. In the next four seconds a montage sequence of nine separate but

overlapping shots shows the sailor smashes the plate twice, the first from his right and second from

his left, emphasizing the violence and angriness of the sailor’s action.