Alexander Nevsky
About Alexander Nevsky
Teutonic knights take Pskov. Novgorod asks Prince Alexander Nevsky to lead. He meets them on the ice of Lake Peipus. Vasili and Gavrilo compete in the fight for the same young woman.
Cast & crew
More about Alexander Nevsky
Sergei Eisenstein directed with Dmitri Vasilyev. He and Pyotr Pavlenko wrote it. Eduard Tisse photographed it. Sergei Prokofiev wrote the score. Esfir Tobak edited with Eisenstein. Mosfilm produced it. Nikolai Cherkasov plays Alexander. Nikolai Okhlopkov and Andrei Abrikosov play the two rivals. Valentina Ivashova is billed. Wikidata gives 112 minutes and a first date of November 25, 1938. Other dates are December 1, 1938, and March 22, 1939. A copy is on the Internet Archive as alexander-nevsky-1938.
Themes
Background
The story is the 13th-century defense of Novgorod. The film was released in 1938.
Making
Eisenstein staged the ice battle with Tisse and a Prokofiev score written for the picture.
Look
Eduard Tisse shot the fall of Pskov and the battle on the ice.
Music
Sergei Prokofiev wrote the score.
Preservation
A copy is on the Internet Archive.
Notes
- Vasilyev and Pavlenko were assigned to keep Eisenstein off 'formalism' and on a timetable.
- It is the first of Eisenstein's three sound films.
- The Stalin Prize of 1941 went to Eisenstein, Pavlenko, Cherkasov, and Abrikosov.
- The battle is fought on the ice, not in the city.
Awards
- Stalin Prize (1941), to Eisenstein, Pyotr Pavlenko, Nikolai Cherkasov, and Andrei Abrikosov
Scenes
- The knights hold Pskov.
- The armies meet on the ice of Lake Peipus.
Also available
- Internet Archive (alexander-nevsky-1938)
