Mikhail Kalatozov’s The Cranes Are Flying (1957) follows the simple love of two Soviet citizens while showing the brutal reality of war and the ability to continue living and functioning as the world is upended. Narratively, this film is a break from those that preceded it—earlier films of the decade had far more positive outlooks on the war (propaganda). This film’s narrative, however, evoked the actual emotions those going through the war felt. Similarly, this film broke stylistically from earlier Soviet films, using techniques that harken back to the Soviet Montage era of silent filmmaking. The film boldly experiments with camera angles, editing, long takes and close-ups, and perspective shots to create an emotionally affecting story. In
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Starting with shot 8 and continuing until shot 17, the image on the screen is never a simple single shot—there’s always at least one other overlaid on top of it. The hand of the director is never more visible than it is here. This is no longer a representation of what Boris is seeing with his eyes nor of what is going on around him. And yet, this overlaying technique works as a dramatic and emotional moment. Similarly to how the shot of Boris running up the stairs (repeated in shot 9) uses the camera to let the audience feel what Boris is feeling, these overlaid images use the camera and editing to let the audience experience Boris’ death. His life flashes before his eyes and the audience feels what that feels like. The most powerful example of this overlaying technique is found between shots 9 and 15. In these shots, flowing cloth from (what appears to be) Veronika’s veil is used to abstract the image. It serves as an added reminder of what the both of them are about to lose. This abstraction is very disorientating, since it obscures enough of the image at times to raise questions about what exactly is being shown on the screen. Coupled with the flashbacks and alternative future glimpses, this montage effectively conveys Boris’ disorientation to the
Starting with shot 8 and continuing until shot 17, the image on the screen is never a simple single shot—there’s always at least one other overlaid on top of it. The hand of the director is never more visible than it is here. This is no longer a representation of what Boris is seeing with his eyes nor of what is going on around him. And yet, this overlaying technique works as a dramatic and emotional moment. Similarly to how the shot of Boris running up the stairs (repeated in shot 9) uses the camera to let the audience feel what Boris is feeling, these overlaid images use the camera and editing to let the audience experience Boris’ death. His life flashes before his eyes and the audience feels what that feels like. The most powerful example of this overlaying technique is found between shots 9 and 15. In these shots, flowing cloth from (what appears to be) Veronika’s veil is used to abstract the image. It serves as an added reminder of what the both of them are about to lose. This abstraction is very disorientating, since it obscures enough of the image at times to raise questions about what exactly is being shown on the screen. Coupled with the flashbacks and alternative future glimpses, this montage effectively conveys Boris’ disorientation to the