Soviet Cinematography 1918-1991: Ideological Conflict and Social Reality

Choice
"...a superlative, advanced course in the conflict between the real Soviet world and "the fictional reality created by directors."

Book Description
The major goal of this work is to examine the influence of official ideology - the set of values and beliefs imposed by the centralized state and the party apparatus - on the presentation of social reality by Soviet cinema. Until now this was not a subject that lent itself to scholarly investigation. Soviet film historians could not deal with it openly until the ideology itself had shifted a few years ago, and within those few years of liberalization and glasnost the vast source of that ideology dissolved. Western scholars lacked familiarity with the subject and were limited in their access. The order of the study follows the chronology of the social history of the Soviet Union, from the October Revolution of 1918 to the final days of perestroika in 1991. The chronological chapters are framed, however, with an introduction laying out the conceptual terminology used to describe the shifting ideological landscape of the book, the social groups appearing in the films analyzed, and the relations of film directors and other film makers to state power, as it was voiced by the instruments of censorship and ideological control. For film students used to the aesthetic categories and philosophical assumptions of the West, the Shlapentokhs' book will provide a compelling new perspective. With its vast array of f hard-to-obtain source materials cited in the bibliography and filmography, this is a much-needed reference work for anyone interested in Soviet film making.


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With a historical sweep that recent events have made definitive, the authors examine the influence of official ideology on the presentation of social reality by Soviet cinema. The order of the study follows the chronology of the social history of the Soviet Union, from the October Revolution to the final days of glasnost. Within the framework of an introduction that lays out the conceptual terminology used to describe that shifting ideological landscape, the authors analyze both the social groups appearing in the films and the relations of film directors and other film makers to state censorship and ideological control. For film students used to the aesthetic categories and philosophical assumptions of the West, the Shlapentokhs' book will provide a compelling new perspective. With its vast array of hard-to-obtain source materials, this is a much-needed reference work for anyone interested in Soviet film making.


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