Drama - Ukraine - War

Soldiers return to Ukraine to find their homeland teeming with strife and dissension; gripped in a conflict between nationalist forces and communists. One faction of soldiers, led by Timosh supports the communists and takes command of a munitions factory at Kiev, converting the weapons arsenal into a fortress. Still reeling from the trauma of war, Timosh and his comrades engage in a violent crusade that soon spreads across the Ukraine. A country of farms and villages gives way to killing fields.

A “white hot war film”, Arsenal is placed alongside Battleship Potemkin as the great revolutionary masterpiece of Soviet cinema. Its frank depiction of violence as well as its fantastic lyrical imagery established Dovzhenko as the experimental film-maker of his age. 

"This ambitious film has evoked comparisons with Picasso's Guernica for its angry, compassionate, complex depiction of war and is full of unforgettable images" - The Guardian

Technical details:

1929 / 87 minutes / Silent - Russian with English subtitles / Mono audio (orchestral score) / 1.33 : 1 Black & White / DVD PAL Multi Region / MRBDVD034

Licensed from Mosfilm. 

Arsenal - Bronnt Industries Kapital (excerpt I) from Bronnt Industries on Vimeo.