Alexander Nevsky: Difference between revisions
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{{work|wppage=Alexander Nevsky (film)}}
[[File:AlexanderNevsky.jpg|frame|"Go tell all in foreign lands that Russia lives!"]]
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The film depicts the attempted invasion of Novgorod in [[The High Middle Ages|the 13th century]] by [[The Teutonic Knights]] of the [[Holy Roman Empire]] and their defeat by the Russian people, led by Prince Alexander, known popularly as Alexander Nevsky. (In order to deal with the Knights, he foregoes a campaign against [[The Horde|the Mongols]].) It begins as the knights invade and conquer the city of Pskov with the help of the [[Les Collaborateurs|traitor]] Tverdilo and massacre its population. In the face of resistance by the [[Aristocrats Are Evil|boyars]] and merchants of Novgorod (urged on by the monk [[Corrupt Church|Ananias]]), Nevsky rallies the common people of Novgorod and in a decisive Battle of the Ice, on the surface of the frozen Lake Chudskoe.
It is worth noting that because the movie was made during the Stalinist regime, it also contains quite a few Soviet political subtexts, such as the anti-religious, anti-German stance of the communist government of that time and the portrayal of Nevsky as a wise and courageous leader―reflecting how Stalin had himself portrayed during his "
{{tropelist}}
* [[Action Girl]]: Vasilisa of Pskov. She avenges her father's death by gearing up and taking to the battlefield. Contrary to another trope, one of the other heroes [[No Guy Wants an Amazon|actively pursues the amazon]].
* [[All Germans Are Nazis]]: And this was ''before'' World War II.
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* [[Bloodless Carnage]]: Not a single drop of blood is shed in the film, despite an impressive body count. Perhaps due to a [[Special Effects Failure]], as it was much more difficult to create realistic gore 70 years ago.
* [[Christianity Is Catholic]]: Orthodox Christianity is almost completely absent from the movie. Only in the end does Prince Alexander pay a visit to the Archbishop of Novgorod. Russian churches have no crosses on top, Russian banners represent some fantastic beasts (in reality, they would feature an icon of Christ), and there are no priests in Alexander's army. Essentially, mediaeval Russians as portrayed by Eisenstein are either pagans or [[Hollywood Atheist|non-Hollywood Atheists]]. Why, you ask? Two words: [[Executive Meddling]].
* [[Combat
* [[Corrupt Church]]: The hideously withered archbishop and the black monk Grigory wish to subject the Russian people to [[The Pope]], while the Russian monk [[Meaningful Name|Ananias]] is willing to betray the people of Novgorod to [[The Teutonic Knights]].
* [[Church Militant]]: "There is one God in Heaven, and one servant of God on Earth. Everything that does not bow before Rome shall [[Kill It
* [[Dawson Casting]]: 35-year old Nikolay Cherkasov, a superstar of Stalin-era Soviet cinema, was cast as the title character -- who was 22 at the time of the battle. Due to [[Popcultural Osmosis]] (see below), most Russian people think that the prince was in his 30's when he fought the battle.
* [[Doomed Moral Victor]]: The mayor of Pskov at the beginning of the film.
* [[Dressing
* [[Earn Your Happy Ending]]: Oh God, that was one difficult battle.
* [[Epic Movie]]
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* [[Executive Meddling]]: The production of the film was an important affair of the state, rigorously monitored by Soviet authorities. The film's ultimate censor was [[Josef Stalin|Stalin himself]].
* [[Exposition]]: Done in a very archaic, silent-era way.
* [[Expy]]: Just as [[The Teutonic Knights]] are used as [[A Nazi
* [[Faceless Goons]]: The soldiery of [[The Teutonic Knights]] wear helmets covering the entire face except for a narrow slit for eyes which cannot be seen.
* [[Fake Nationality]]: All German characters, for obvious reasons, are played by Russian actors. The Mongol envoy is Chinese, but Mongol extras are played by actual Mongols (students of Soviet universities; Mongolia was a [[Commie Land]] back then).
* [[Getting Crap Past the Radar]]: The film features a Russian Orthodox saint as a protagonist, presents mediaeval Russia in a positive light, and glorifies non-Communist Russian patriotism. All these things were looked down upon by Soviet authorities, yet Eisenstein got away with it.
** Eisenstein even smuggled in a friggin' [[The Bible
* [[Good Republic, Evil Empire]]: Novgorod at its height was a feudal republic with the prince being elected by the city council, severely limited in power and mostly just a figurehead -- unless there was an imminent military threat. By contrast, the Knights were vassals of the [[Holy Roman Empire]], and the Mongols... You get the idea.
* [[Historical Hero Upgrade]]: Prince Alexander was a very shrewd politician who spent most of his life feuding with other Russian princes. The film -- following a [[Older Than They Think|tradition]] much older than Stalinism -- focuses on his younger years and his [[Crowning Moment of Awesome]].
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** Also, few people in Russia know about the Biblical origins of the famous "die by the sword" quote. And it's [[Beam Me Up, Scotty|very often misquoted]].
* [[Proper Lady]]: Olga Danilova.
* [[Putting
* [[Royals Who Actually Do Something]]: Not only does Prince Alexander lead the Russian troops, but when we first see him in the film, he is among a number of fishermen setting their nets.
* [[Scenery Gorn]]: The frozen lake, strewn with bodies of fallen warriors. Oh, and the Mongol-induced devastation at the beginning.
* [[Sidekick|Sidekicks]]: Alexander has two, [[Reckless Sidekick|Vasiliy]] [[Plucky Comic Relief|Buslay]] and [[Warrior Poet|Gavrilo Oleksich]].
* [[Shout-Out]]: The film has been cited in a number of subsequent fictional works.
** The beginning of ''[[Conan the Barbarian]]'' (1982). Thulsa Doom and his warriors attack in the dead of winter, torch the Cimmerian village, slaughter the inhabitants -- all while [https://web.archive.org/web/20090725104423/http://goldenaxe.classicgaming.gamespy.com/daimages/Images2/fanart/3)-Thulsa-Doom-original.jpg wearing some strangely familiar helmets]. Also, the "It's not the sword, but the hand that wields it" quote.
** Also, ''King Arthur'' (2005) features a battle on the ice (much smaller in scale).
** The ''[[The Lord of the Rings (
** In the novel ''[[Red Storm Rising]]'', this film is shown on Russian TV shortly before the main [[False-Flag Operation]] (detonating a bomb at the Kremlin and blaming [[West Germany]]).
** ''[[First Squad]]'' has the [[Ghostapo]] raising the spirits of some Teutonic knights to fight the Russians on a frozen lake.
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[[Category:Epic Movie]]
[[Category:Alexander Nevsky]]
[[Category:The Criterion Collection]]
[[Category:Soviet Films]]
[[Category:Pages with working Wikipedia tabs]]
[[Category:Film]]
[[Category:Cult Classic]]
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