Mikhail Kalatozov

 Mikhail Kalatozov




The Cranes are Flying (1957)

Letter Never Sent (1960)

I Am Cuba (1964)



RANKED:

3. Letter Never Sent (1960)


Mikhail Kalatozov's 1960 film "Letter Never Sent" follows a group of geologists travelling to Siberia in search of diamonds. Taking the experimental visual format he employed with his previous film, 1957's "The Cranes Are Flying," Kalatozov employs a handheld camera and uses close-ups to layer the film with a sense of visual intimacy. The viewer feels as though they are right there in the environment with the characters and their innermost anxieties and emotions are on full display. Thematically, the film explores the extremities of survival and the following existential notions that come from devastation after devastation.



2. I Am Cuba (1964)


Despite being off-the-map for over 30 years, the rediscovery of Mikhail Kalatozov's 1964 masterpiece "I Am Cuba" in the 1990s allowed for contemporary filmmakers and appreciators to view the creative freedom that only film could offer. During the tenuous relationship Cuba had with the U.S. after its revolution in 1959, the Soviet Union decided to capitalize by collaborating with the state to make Communist propaganda films. The result, despite its label as 'propaganda,' is a film that destroys any notions about restraints a camera can have. Kalatozov's camera moves freely in the three dimensional space around its subjects, uses infrared lighting to exaggerate contrast, and uses extreme wide-angle shots, submerges and lifts out of water without any drops on the lens or film. The most impressive shots of the film come during a funeral procession, in which the camera seems to magically float above the city. All of this creative camerawork would make any filmmaker or appreciator gush. On top of this, its story highlights the country's frustrations with colonialism, capitalism, and dictatorial oppression. It is such a gift that "I Am Cuba" was rescued from obscurity and restored. Because its a stark reminder of the limitless potential of that filmmaking can accomplish. 




1. The Cranes are Flying (1957)


After the death of Joseph Stalin, the Soviet Union entered a new age of Soviet cinema known as the "Soviet thaw." This renaissance ushered in new, inventive cinema that would have never been creatively possible under Stalinist rule. One of the central filmmakers behind this movement was Mikhail Kalatozov. His 1957 film "The Cranes are Flying" struck global cinema like a lightening bolt, even winning the Palme d'or at the Cannes Film Festival. The shots of the film are composed like well thought-out photographs while Kalatozov's camera is utterly free to explore its environments. There are unforgettable shots, tracking shots, compositions, and uses of cranes that would send a filmgoer into an exciting thrill. Never had the camera been explorative in its ability to traverse the environment of its landscape. On top of the impressive visual imagery, the film itself represented a new vision of the Soviet Union and Mother Russia. Although the film continues the Soviet orthodox of patriotism (or nationalism), the film is still vehemently anti-war, feminist, and represents a new individual perspective that is more commonly held for Western cinema. 


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