Friday, 10 April 2015

General Zhivago

The Last Command

Directed by Josef von Sternberg this film stars Emil Jannings, Evelyn Brent and William Powell. In Hollywood an old man his hired as an extra to play a Russian general and we flash back ten years to see his life as a Prince and general in the real Russian army.

This film does a pretty good job of following the story of someone who was a patriot but fell foul of the Communist revolution in Russia. At times the plot is a little melodramatic but it works pretty well in the vein of “love denied by war” and manages to you on a real journey of empathy as well as dislike for the protagonist. Emil Jannings won an Oscar in part for his performance as the shell shocked protagonist and while it may seem a little rudimentary at times to modern eyes it's still a good performance.


4/5

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