''Ordinary Fascism'' (), or ''Triumph Over Violence'' is a 1965 Soviet film directed by

Mikhail Romm Mikhail Ilyich Romm (; – 1 November 1971) was a Soviet film director, screenwriter and pedagogue. He was named People's Artist of the USSR in 1950. Life and career Early life He was born in Irkutsk into a family of mixed Russian Jewish ...

. The film is also known as ''Echo of the Jackboot'' in the United Kingdom. The film uses archival footage to depict the rise and fall of

fascism Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hie ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

Style

The film's style was largely influenced by the work of Soviet documentarian

Esfir Shub Esfir Ilyinichna Shub (Russian: Эсфи́рь Ильи́нична Шуб; 16 March 1894, Surazh, Russian Empire – 21 September 1959, Moscow, Soviet Union), also referred to as Esther Il'inichna Shub, was a pioneering Soviet filmmaker and edit ...

. Shub is regarded as the creator of the

compilation film A compilation film, or compilation movie is a film composed of scenes and shots taken from two or more prior films or television programs and edited together so as to make a new film, whether on the same or a different subject. The most common e ...

, which uses existing footage to depict historical events. Shub's most famous compilation film, ''The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty'', gathered newsreel footage from pre-revolutionary Russia to depict the decline of the Czar and valorize the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

. Inspired by Shub's state-approved documentary style, Romm culled material from German archives, archives of post-war antifascist organizations, photo archives and archives seized from the German military to create his documentary. Romm used novel technologies in the documentary. With reverse playback, Romm was able to repeat sequences like the kiss given by a Nazi party official to industrialist

Alfried Krupp Alfried Felix Alwyn Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach (13 August 1907 – 30 July 1967) was a German engineer and the last personal sole owner of the company Fried. Krupp. The eldest of eight siblings, he came from the Krupp family on his mother's ...

, which Romm used to highlight the relationship between the Nazi party and organized capital. Romm also used

freeze-frame shot In film and video, a freeze frame is when a single frame of content shows repeatedly on the screen—"freezing" the action. This can be done in the content itself, by printing (on film) or recording (on video) multiple copies of the same source fr ...

s to focus on moments from the archival footage. Aside from co-writing, co-editing, and directing the film, Romm also provided the film's narration. Initially, had wanted the narration done by someone else, but when his collaborators heard working versions of his voice-over, they encouraged him to do it. Romm's unique vocabulary and intonation became one of the film's main notable features.

Influence

Vadim Abdrashitov Vadim Yusupovich Abdrashitov (, ; 19 January 1945 – 12 February 2023) was a Russian film director. He was internationally renowned as one of Russian cinema's most notable independent director (film), directors, with awards from the Berlin Inte ...

in an interview mentions ''Ordinary Fascism'' as the film that inspired him to make his own movies.

Soundtrack

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Triumph Over Violence Films directed by Mikhail Romm 1965 films 1960s Soviet films 1960s Russian-language films 1965 documentary films Soviet black-and-white films Soviet World War II films Documentary films about World War II Documentary films about the Holocaust Documentary films about Nazi Germany Black-and-white documentary films

Style

Influence

Soundtrack

See also

References

External links