About the film
Part one begins with the young Ivan IV crowning himself Tsar of all Russia. He marries Anastasia, takes Kazan and survives a near-fatal illness, while the old noble families, the boyars, plot against him.
Part two goes deeper into suspicion and terror. Ivan creates his own private guard, the oprichniki, and the struggle with his enemies ends in a famous banquet scene that bursts into colour.
With huge shadows, strange angles and Prokofiev's score, Ivan the Terrible looks like no other film. Part two angered Stalin and was not released until 1958, years after both he and Eisenstein had died.
Did you know?
- The score is by Sergei Prokofiev, who also wrote the music for Alexander Nevsky.
- Part two was banned and only released in 1958.
- Eisenstein planned a third part, but it was never completed.
