Peter the First, Part I
About Peter the First, Part I
After the Russian defeat at Narva in 1700, Peter and Menshikov reach Novgorod. Peter blames his son Alexei for leaving the city unfortified. He raises a new army, takes Marienburg, and brings the prisoner Catherine, a pastor's ward, into his household. He founds Saint Petersburg. Alexei, angry at the reforms and at Peter's child with Catherine, flees to Europe with Euphrosyne.
Cast & crew
More about Peter the First, Part I
Vladimir Petrov directed the first half of a two-part film at Lenfilm. Aleksey Tolstoy, Petrov, and Nikolay Leshchenko wrote it from Tolstoy's play. Nikolai Simonov plays Peter. Nikolai Cherkasov plays Alexei. Alla Tarasova plays Catherine. Mikhail Zharov plays Menshikov. Viktor Dobrovolsky plays Yaguzhinsky and the serf Fedka. Vyacheslav Gordanov and Vladimir Yakovlev photographed it. N. Kerstens edited. Vladimir Shcherbachov wrote the music. Wikipedia times Part I at 96 minutes and Part II, released in 1938, at 96 minutes. Wikidata lists 194 minutes. Wikidata dates Part I to August 31, 1937. The catalog year stays 1937. The Commons file covers both parts.
Themes
Background
Part I stays inside the years after Narva, before the Poltava victory of Part II.
Making
Shot at Lenfilm on an official order. The English Wikipedia title is Peter the Great. This entry is Part I.
Look
Vyacheslav Gordanov and Vladimir Yakovlev shot the Novgorod and Marienburg passages.
Music
Vladimir Shcherbachov composed the score.
Notes
- Fedka, a serf at Novgorod, later serves in the Marienburg campaign, is sold to the Ural industrialist Nikita Demidov, and escapes to the Don.
- Catherine is the wife of a Swedish dragoon when the Russians take her, then Menshikov's lover, then Peter's consort.
- Part II, not this file's title, carries Poltava, Alexei's trial, and Peter's proclamation as emperor in 1721.
- A Paris exhibition prize in 1937 and the 1941 Stalin Prize, first class, are attached to the two-part film, the Stalin Prize going to Petrov, Simonov, and Zharov.
Awards
- Prize at a Paris exhibition, 1937
- Stalin Prize, first class, 1941 (Vladimir Petrov, Nikolai Simonov, Mikhail Zharov)
Scenes
- Peter scolds Alexei in Novgorod after Narva.
- Catherine is taken among the Marienburg prisoners.
- Alexei flees with Euphrosyne.
Influenced by
- Aleksey Tolstoy's play Peter the First
Also available
- Wikimedia Commons (1937-1938 Пётр Первый.webm)
