Eisenstein, Pudovkin, Dovzhenko, Vertov: these Soviet film directors are acknowledged to be among the greatest in the history of cinematography. To Eisenstein we owe such films as Battleship Potemkin and October; to Pudovkin Mother and The End of St Petersburg; to Dovzhenko Earth and Zvenigora; and to Vertov The Man With a Movie Camera and The Three Songs of Lenin. Herbert Marshall knew each of them personally, both as artists and as friends, and shared their cinema world when he was a student at the GIK (The Moscow State Institute of Cinematography) in the heady years following the Revolution into the period of the first Five Year Plan. His material is culled from personal recollections, diaries, notes, unpublished and published biographies, letters, press cuttings, articles and books in various languages, but mainly from Soviet sources and the Soviet cinema world. Taking the subjects one by one, this indispensible book discusses their major films including an account of their creation and reception in the USSR and abroad. It shows the tragedy of these four Soviet artists who were lucky enough not to be arrested or deprived of their limited freedom, yet who nevertheless ended up with 'crippled creative biographies'. The author then examines the changed viewpoint in the climate of 1983 when the book was originally published.

Eisenstein, Pudovkin, Dovzhenko, Vertov: these Soviet film directors are acknowledged to be among the greatest in the history of cinematography. To Eisenstein we owe such films as Battleship Potemkin and October; to Pudovkin Mother and The End of St Petersburg; to Dovzhenko Earth and Zvenigora; and to Vertov The Man With a Movie Camera and The Three Songs of Lenin. Herbert Marshall knew each of them personally, both as artists and as friends, and shared their cinema world when he was a student at the GIK (The Moscow State Institute of Cinematography) in the heady years following the Revolution into the period of the first Five Year Plan. His material is culled from personal recollections, diaries, notes, unpublished and published biographies, letters, press cuttings, articles and books in various languages, but mainly from Soviet sources and the Soviet cinema world. Taking the subjects one by one, this indispensible book discusses their major films including an account of their creation and reception in the USSR and abroad. It shows the tragedy of these four Soviet artists who were lucky enough not to be arrested or deprived of their limited freedom, yet who nevertheless ended up with 'crippled creative biographies'. The author then examines the changed viewpoint in the climate of 1983 when the book was originally published.

Diverse essays on the life and career of one of the greatest tragic actors of the nineteenth century. Ira Aldridge -- a black New Yorker -- was one of nineteenth-century Europe's greatest actors. He performed abroad for forty-three years, winning more awards, honors, and official decorations than any of his professional peers. Billed as the "African Roscius," Aldridge developed a repertoire initially consisting of Shakespeare's Othello, melodramas about slavery, and farces that drew on his ability to sing and dance. By the time he began touring in Europe he was principally a Shakespearean actor, playing such classic characters as Shylock, Macbeth, Richard III, and King Lear. Although his frequent public appearances made him the most visible black man in the world by mid-nineteenth century, today Aldridge tends to be a forgotten figure, seldom mentioned in histories of British and European theater. This collection restores the luster to Aldridge's reputation by examining his extraordinary achievements against all odds. The early essays offer biographical information, while later essays examine his critical and popular reception throughout the world. Taken together, these diverse approaches to Aldridge offer a fuller understanding and heightened appreciation of a remarkable man who had an exceptionally interesting life and a spectacular career. Contributors: Cyril Bruyn Andrews, Nikola Batusic, Philip A. Bell, Keith Byerman, Ruth M. Cowhig, Nicholas M. Evans, Joost Groeneboer, Ann Marie Koller, Joyce Green MacDonald, Herbert Marshall, James J. Napier, Krzysztof Sawala, Gunner Sjoegren, James McCune Smith, Hazel Waters, and Stanley B. Winters. Bernth Lindfors is Professor Emeritus of English and African Literatures at The University of Texas at Austin.

In World War One, Martha Cnockhaert (Madeleine Carroll) works as a spy in a German hospital, acting for the allies. Aided by orderly Stephan (Herbert Marshall), Martha plots to blow up a German ammunition dump. When Martha accompanies a German Commandant to Brussels, a change in the Kaiser's movements inadvertently reveals Martha's true purpose.

Five films from the hugely popular sci-fi franchise. In 'The Fly' (1958), a scientist (David Hedison) is obsessed with developing a molecular matter transmitter. When he attempts to test the invention himself, he is unwittingly joined by a companion - a fly that has sneaked into the transportation pod with him. The consequences of the experiment soon become clear, as the scientist begins to take on fly-like characteristics. 'Return of the Fly' (1959) sees the original scientist's son reconstructing the matter transporter which turned his father into an insect, with the young man's experiments leading him down the same insectoid path. In 'Curse of the Fly' (1965) the plot again revolves around the Delambre family, although this time it is the scientist's grandson, Henri Delambre (Brian Donlevy), who becomes obsessed with transporter experiments to the dismay of his two sons, who want to live normal lives and forget about their grandfather's invention. Henri's oldest son, Martin (George Baker), marries a young woman who just escaped from a mental hospital. After Martin's new wife discovers a closet filled with deranged humans left over from failed teleportation experiments, the police are called and Henri attempts to flee using the infamous transporter. 'The Fly' (1986) is the Oscar-winning remake of the 1958 horror classic. Scientist Seth Brundle (Jeff Goldblum), experimenting with transmitting matter uses himself as a guinea-pig, unaware that a fly has got into the machinery. As he embarks on a relationship with Veronica Quaife (Geena Davis), the journalist covering his project, his body slowly begins to take on fly-like characteristics. 'The Fly 2' (1989) is the sequel to the 1986 movie. Dr Seth Brundle is no more, but he has left behind a gruesome legacy: the teleportation device which transformed him into a human fly, and a son, Martin (Matthew Moore/Harley Cross). Infected with his father's insect metabolism, Martin's growth is hugely accelerated, and he is soon a fully grown man (Eric Stoltz). When he discovers the remains of his father's experiment, Martin decides to pick up where Seth left off.

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