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Cast
Nikolai Cherkasov
as Czar Ivan IV
Lyudmila Tselikovskaya
as Czarina Anastasia Romanovna
Serafima Birman
as Boyarina Efrosinia Staritskaya
Mikhail Nazvanov
as Prince Andrei Kurbsky
Mikhail Zharov
as Czar's Guard Malyuta Skuratov
Amvrosii Buchma
as Czar's Guard Aleksei Basmanov
Mikhail Kuznetsov
as Fyodor Basmanov
Pavel Kadochnikov
as Vladimir Andreyevich Staritsky
Andrei Abrikosov
as Boyar Fyodor Kolychev
Alexander Mgebrov
as Novgorod's Archbishop Pimen
Movie Info & Details
Release Year1944
Runtime1h 35m
LanguageRussian
CertificationNR
GenresDrama, History
Votes231
DirectorSergei Eisenstein
WritersSergei Eisenstein
TypeFeature Film
Rating7.3 out of 10
Cast10 credited
Also Known AsIvan the Terrible, Part I
About Ivan the Terrible, Part I
Set during the early part of his reign, Ivan faces betrayal from the aristocracy and even his closest friends as he seeks to unite the Russian people. Sergei Eisenstein's final film, this is the first part of a three-part biopic of Tsar Ivan IV of Russia, which was never completed due to the producer's dissatisfaction with Eisenstein's attempts to use forbidden experimental filming techniques and excessive cost overruns. The second part was completed but not released for a decade after Eisenstein's death and a change of heart in the USSR government toward his work; the third part was only in its earliest stage of filming when shooting was stopped altogether.
Directed by Sergei Eisenstein, Ivan the Terrible, Part I leans on a strong ensemble — Nikolai Cherkasov, Lyudmila Tselikovskaya, Serafima Birman — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.
The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about drama titles of 1944.
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