L'Université d'Ottawa
Faculté des arts
Langues et littératures modernes
University of Ottawa
Faculty of Arts
Modern Languages and Literatures
Winter / Hiver 2015
RUS 2104A Russian Cinema
Tuesday 1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Thursday 11:30 a.m. -1:00 p.m.
Vanier 3075
Professor Natalia Vesselova
E-mail: nvess040@uottawa.ca
Office Hours: Tuesday 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. at Arts 219 (70 Laurier East) and by
appointment.
Tel.: 613-562-5800 Ext. 3760.
There is a course website containing important information (the syllabus, links, reading
material, assignments, etc.) that must be checked regularly. The link to the website will
be mailed out to the class, but can also be found on the professor’s homepage:
http://aix1.uottawa.ca/~nvesselo/Natalia_Vesselova_Homepage.htm
This course is taught in English. All films are in Russian with English subtitles. No
knowledge of Russian required.
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Objectives and Approach
In this course we will examine the evolution of Russian cinema from the prerevolutionary film-making and the experimental work of the 1920s, including Sergei
Eisenstein's famous essay on "The Montage of Attractions," through Socialist Realism, to
the late Soviet, post-Soviet, and present-day periods. We will view films by selected
world-famous and less internationally known directors representative of Russian film as a
cultural and socio-historical phenomenon.
Aspects to be examined include: film in the context of history; interaction of film and
ideology; film as an artistic medium and its formal characteristics (camera technique and
composition of shots, montage and rhythmic structure of films); thematic content; the
relationship of film to other art forms (literature, music, the visual arts); the changing
structure of the Russian film industry, and more.
In class, films will be shown not in full but in longish clips with analysis and discussion
afterward. It is students’ responsibility to see all the assigned films in full either at home
or at the extra-curriculum screening on Thursday at 7:00 p.m., LMX 121 (the
detailed program TBA). For home viewing, all films are available on reserve in Morisset
library and online via Moscow Studio (Mosfilm) official youtube channel.
Attendance and Participation
Students are required to be present at all classes. Those who miss more than three classes
may not be admitted to the final exam unless they have a medical certificate or notify the
professor in person or by e-mail. Assignments and exams will be to a large extent based
on the material discussed in class. Random pop-quizzes will not only test students’ grasp
of the material, but demonstrate attendance as well. Students must come prepared with
the assigned material and are encouraged to demonstrate their knowledge: active
participation will be taken into consideration and affect the final grade.
Assignments
Pop-quizzes (throughout the course at random times). Short in-class tests or responses
based on the material assigned for the day as well as on the major terms and concepts
introduced earlier in the course.
Film Reviews (approx. 1000 words each. Due on February 5 and March 17) Analytical
response to a film on the list discussing its various aspects (narrative, formal
characteristics, plot, ideological content, etc.) to be chosen by the student. No research
required. The first paper must be on a film made before 1945; a second response paper on
a film made after that date.
Midterm exam (February 26) Identification quiz concerning films, names, historical
events and concepts discussed in the first half of the course and a short essay question
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from the list provided in advance.
Term paper (approx. 2500 words with bibliography. Due on April 7) This is a research
paper on some aspect of the history and evolution of Russian film, or a critical analysis of
one or several Russian films on the list (not including the films chosen for a response
paper). A research bibliography of not less than three secondary sources is required.
Materials taken from the Internet count as reliable sources only if they are extensive
professional film reviews, official interviews, or academic articles found in electronically
published scholarly journals.
Final exam (TBA) Identification quiz on names, historical events, films, terms, and
concepts. Identification and interpretation of a short film clip or a film still and an essay
question from the list provided in advance. The response to the essay question may
involve films of your choice from outside the compulsory list.
All the home assignments should be written in accordance with the M.L.A.
guidelines, typed in 12 point Times New Roman, double-spaced and stapled.
Evaluation
Participation 5%
Pop-quizzes/in-class responses 10 %
Film Reviews (due dates: February 5 and March 17) 7.5+7.5=15%
Midterm exam (February 26) 20 %
Term paper (due date: April 7) 20%
Final exam (TBA): 30%
Late Assignments
Assignments submitted past their due date lose 5% of the grade each day; work submitted
more than four days late will not be accepted and the grade will be zero, unless the
student presents a medical certificate along with the paper or receives a deferral from the
professor in advance in case of special circumstances.
Plagiarism, Improper Citation, and Academic Integrity
Plagiarism is an attempt to pass someone else’s words and ideas for your own; selfplagiarism includes turning in the same paper for different classes. It constitutes serious
academic fraud, and the penalties vary from grading the assignment as zero to expulsion
from the university. For further information, please read the university guidelines at
http://www.uottawa.ca/plagiarism.pdf
Plagiarism might sometimes result from improper citation, though being misinformed is
not a valid excuse. Proper and improper citation will be discussed in class. If in doubt,
never hesitate to consult the professor.
It is important for all students to maintain academic integrity:
http://web5.uottawa.ca/mcs-smc/academicintegrity/home.php
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Free services available to meet students’ needs and provide help:
The Mentoring Centre of the Faculty of Arts is located in room 125B, Simard Building.
The SASS (Student Academic Success Service) provides various services:
http://web.sass.uottawa.ca
The Access Service - formerly called Special Services - helps students with a physical
handicap or learning disability. It is part of the SASS: http://www.sass.uottawa.ca/access
SCHEDULE (NB: the distribution of topics is subject to change)
January
13 Introduction to Russian film and film studies.
15 Pre-revolutionary film. Bauer’s Mad Love. ***Reading: Tsivian (Course pack).
20 Bolshevik film policy in the 1920s. Pudovkin's Chess Fever.
22 Abstract film-making. Eisenstein's Potemkin . ***Reading: Wollen (Course pack).
27 Eisenstein's Potemkin.
29 Dziga Vertov's Man with Movie-Camera. ***Reading: Gillespie (Course pack).
February
3 “Life as it should be”: heroic epic (Vasilyev brothers’ Chapaev) and pre-war Soviet
comedies (Alexandrov’s Circus). ***Reading: Kenez (Course pack).
5 Eisenstein's Ivan the Terrible. Film Review I due. ***Reading: Kozlov (Course pack).
10 Eisenstein's Ivan the Terrible. ***Reading: Villarejo and Lotman (Course pack).
12 Kalatozov's Cranes are Flying. ***Reading: Woll (Course pack).
24 Movies of the “Thaw.” Shepitko’s The Ascent.
26 Midterm exam
March
3 Tarkovsky's Andrei Rublev. ***Reading: Johnson&Petrie (Course pack).
5 Tarkovsky's Andrei Rublev.
10 The popular industry of “Stagnation”– cartoons, comedies, and melodramas.
12 Perestroika and the liberation of film; “off the shelf”: Paradzhanov, Abuladze,
Klimov. ***Reading: Faraday (Course pack).
17 Telling it like it is: Pichul’s Little Vera. Film Review II due.
19 Russian film after 1991: Mikhalkov's Burnt by the Sun.
24 Mikhalkov's Burnt by the Sun.
26 Rethinking the post-Soviet Russian hero: Balabanov’s and Rogozhkin’s films.
31 Coming together: Lungin's Wedding.
April
2 Another man with a movie-camera: Sokurov's Russian Ark.
7 Russian film today: “angry young woman” Valeriya Gai Germanika; blockbusters
(Bekmambetov), historical films (Admiral, The Tsar), and comedies (The Election Day,
Kiss Them All! (Go’rko!), etc.). Term paper due.
9 Russian film today: melodramas (Two Days), existential dramas (The Island, Major),
and social dramas (Elena, Kokoko).