“ANNIVERSARY OF THE REVOLUTION” BY D. VERTOV AND “OCTOBER” BY S. EISENSTEIN: CONSTRUCTION OF A REVOLUTIONARY NARRATIVE

The article analyzes the process of constructing a revolutionary narrative in two fi lms through such aspects as the issue of “historical accuracy”, the role of masses and the depiction of characters of the revolution. “Anniversary of the Revolution” is a non-fi ction fi lm, assembled in 1918 from documentary materials. “October” is a feature fi lm made in 1927, where the fi rst attempt to play V. I. Lenin was made. “Historical accuracy” was used by both directors as an additional rationale when discussing the release of the fi lms, but was not perceived as a need for a chronological reproduction of events. A number of elements of the revolutionary narrative shaped by the “Anniversary of the Revolution”, such as the “depravity” of the royal family and the phenomenon of mass funerals, were a direct continuation of the First World War era and revolutionary culture. By the time “October” was created, they had lost their relevance and were replaced by elements of the Soviet narrative, such as minimizing the signifi cance of the February stage of the revolution and the Russian Provisional Government.