Battleship Potemkin versus the Birth of a Nation

Aside from the similar visual styles of Battleship Potemkin and The Birth

of a Nation, both films are examples of civil unrest during periods of political

instability in a historical setting. Both movies take place during a national

revolution and involve several instances of social turmoil and disturbance. The

styles of these films can be contrasted by viewing their use of montage, focus,

and basic film techniques in relation to thematic and constructive plot elements.

The Birth of a Nation is a story about the consequences of the Civil War

on the friendship of a northern and southern family. It expresses the effects of

the war on their lives in relation to major historical and political events. This

movie is directed by D.W. Griffith and is based on the story of the origins of the

Ku Klux Klan. In this film, Griffith uses certain film techniques, which have

become the fundamental basis of all movies today. These include the addition of

a musical score, the use of natural outdoor landscapes as backgrounds, close-ups,

long shots, panning, cross-cutting, the iris effect, the combination of parallel

action and editing in a montage. The Birth of a Nation is also the first film to

incorporate the dramatization of history in a narrative structure, as the first epic.

Before it was made, many films were only one reel in length and involved no

camera movement or editing. This film brought movies into large theaters and

completely revolutionized the way they were made. (Smith 31-33)

Battleship Potemkin is an examination of the Russian revolt of 1905

onboard the Potemkin. When the sailors are forced to eat rotten meat, they

declare a protest strike. The following uprising leads to the death of

Vakulinchuk, the organize...

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that can be contrived through the collision of ideas in the montage. Both films

efficiently present themes of dehumanization and revolution during periods of

societal injustice and are concrete examples of social disorder.

Bibliography

Dirks, Tim. ?The Greatest Films: The Birth of a Nation (1915).? May 1996.

19 Nov. 2002.

Hart, James, ed. The Man Who Invented Hollywood: The Autobiography of D.W. Griffith.

Kentucky: Touchstone Publishing, 1972.

Mayer, David. Sergei M. Eisenstein?s Potemkin: A Shot-by-shot Presentation. New York,

NY: Grossman Publishers, 1972.

Smith, Scott. The Film 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential People in the History of

the Movies. Secaucus, New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group, 1998.

Wagenknecht, Edward, and Anthony Slide. The Films of D.W. Griffith. New York:

Crown Publishers, 1975.