Ivan the Terrible, Part I

1944 1h 35m RU

👍

7.3

SOLID

🔥

100%

CERTIFIED FRESH

⭐

7.7

IMDB

★7.3TMDB · 239🍅100%Rotten Tomatoes★7.7IMDB · 11,083

DramaHistory

Synopsis

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Set during the early part of his reign, Ivan faces betrayal from the aristocracy and even his closest friends as he seeks to unite the Russian people. Sergei Eisenstein's final film, this is the first part of a three-part biopic of Tsar Ivan IV of Russia, which was never completed due to the producer's dissatisfaction with Eisenstein's attempts to use forbidden experimental filming techniques and excessive cost overruns. The second part was completed but not released for a decade after Eisenstein's death and a change of heart in the USSR government toward his work; the third part was only in its earliest stage of filming when shooting was stopped altogether.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Nikolai Cherkasov
Czar Ivan IV
Lyudmila Tselikovskaya
Czarina Anastasia Romanovna
Serafima Birman
Boyarina Efrosinia Staritskaya
Mikhail Nazvanov
Prince Andrei Kurbsky
Mikhail Zharov
Czar's Guard Malyuta Skuratov
Amvrosii Buchma
Czar's Guard Aleksei Basmanov
Mikhail Kuznetsov
Fyodor Basmanov
Pavel Kadochnikov
Vladimir Andreyevich Staritsky

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Sergei Eisenstein
Writers: Sergei Eisenstein
Languages: Russian
Countries: Soviet Union

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

82 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Ivan The Terrible Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Sergei Eisenstein, shot by Eduard Tisse. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Sergei Prokofiev. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Sergei Eisenstein shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

ERA

Did you know

Nikolai Cherkasov and Lyudmila Tselikovskaya and Serafima Birman carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0037824 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Sergei Eisenstein directs. Eduard Tisse behind the camera. Sergei Prokofiev scores. Sergei Eisenstein cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Soviet Union. Dialogue in Russian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

182 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Part of the "Ivan The Terrible Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
3Directed by Sergei Eisenstein, shot by Eduard Tisse. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Sergei Prokofiev. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Sergei Eisenstein shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Nikolai Cherkasov and Lyudmila Tselikovskaya and Serafima Birman carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt0037824 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 8 themes, including "coronation", "exile", "treason", "tatars".
9Released under 27 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Eduard Tisse
Original score: Sergei Prokofiev
Editing: Sergei Eisenstein
Production design: Yosyp Shpinel
Costume design: Nadezhda Buzina
Makeup / hair: Vasili Goryunov
Runtime: 95 min · 1h 35m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: RU
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Ivan the Terrible, Part I (1944)
Rotten Tomatoes: 100% 🍅 Fresh
IMDB rating: 7.7/10 · 11,083 votes
MPAA: Not Rated

Awards

2 wins & 1 nomination

Part of

Ivan The Terrible Collection

A two-part historical epic film about Ivan IV of Russia made by Russian director Sergei Eisenstein. Part 1 was released in 1944 but Part 2 was not released until 1958 due to political censorship. The films were originally planned as part of a trilogy, but Eisenstein died before filming of the third part could be finished.

Also by

Sergei Eisenstein

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-06-06
★ 8/10
Nikolay Cherkasov is superb in this speculative biopic of the infamous Tsar of all the Russias. Made towards the end of the Second World War, Sergei Eisenstein manages to create a magnificent depiction of just how this often barbaric, but actually rather shrewd and intelligent 16th century monarch inherited and retained his throne despite plots and intrigues from his court, his people, his nobles - basically, just about everyone. His goal? Well that is presented in an almost Stalinist style. To unite the Russian peoples and to protect them from the oppression of those who would invade their land and take away their freedoms. The anti-Nazi rhetoric is front, centre and potent. This is also a terrific historical epic with great attention to detail, some penetrating photographic techniques and a string supporting actors portraying friend and foe that all offers us a captivating, sometimes quite claustrophobic, illustration of a nation and a government that seems frequently but a hair's breath from insanity. Lyudmila Tselikovskaya is superb as his conspiring Tsarina Anastasia as is Serafima Birman as his even more duplicitous aunt Efrosinia who has designs on his throne for her own son Vladimir - who rather epitomises the theory of the inbred degenerate identified by Josef von Sternberg in "The Scarlett Empress" made ten years earlier. At times it has the theatrical style of a silent film; the lighting and staging and the eyes - indeed the facial expressions in general, combined with the rousing Prokofiev score convey much more than any mere dialogue ever could. A finer tale of power lust, debauchery and metal instability you will never see in film - and I loved it!

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