Slavic Studies (Documentaries)

Directed by Veronika Lišková.
89 minutes; released 2010.
An overview of the art, energy, and change shown by recent developments in Czech theater. The film also covers the historical background that led up to this productive age of Czech drama.

Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky.
205 minutes; released 1966.
A 15th-century monk perseveres in painting icons despite the civil disruptions and cruel turmoil of his times. In Russian with English subtitles.

Directed by Sergei M. Eisenstein and Dmitriy Vasilev.
108 minutes; released 1938.
Biographical story of Prince Alexander Nevsky and his successful resistance against an attempt by the Teutonic Knights to invade Russia in 1242.

Directed by Semyon Aranovich.
65 minutes; released 1990.
A look at the Soviet poet. Although her works were banned and weren't published for 17 years, her poem 'Requiem' became the underground anthem for the millions who suffered under Stalin.

Directed by Dayna Goldfine and Dan Geller.
119 minutes; released 2005.
This film, which includes performance footage, presents an oral history of the Ballets Russes from the point of view of its many surviving performers.

Directed by Wanda Kościa.
50 minutes; released 2005.
The Warsaw Uprising of 1944 a heroic and tragic 63-day struggle to liberate World War 2 Warsaw from Nazi/German occupation.

Directed by Pavel Chukhray et al.
283 minutes; released 2002.
A series of five historical films about human courage, heroism, and triumph among the deepest of adversity during World War II. Produced by Steven Spielberg and the Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation. In Spanish, Czech, Hungarian, Polish and Russian dialogue, English, French or Spanish subtitles.

Directed by Paul Burgess and John-Paul Davidson.
120 minutes; released 2005.
A lavishly-filmed two-part biography of the minor German princess who became one of Russia's greatest rulers.

Directed by Felix Feist.
87 minutes; released 1950.
A dramatization of the court trial of the Hungarian Cardinal Jozsef Mindszenty for treason against the Communist government.

Produced by the Teaching Company.
30-minute lectures; released 2003.
This course examines the past 300 years of Russian history through the eyes of its people; looking at historical themes by examining the lives of the men and women who were Russia.

Directed by Semyon Aranovich.
73 minutes; released 1990.
Through rare footage and first-hand testimony from Josef Stalin's last surviving bodyguard, this controversial documentary gives insight into an especially repressive era of Soviet History. In Russian with English subtitles.

Directed by Sergei M. Eisenstein.
184 minutes; released 1944.
Part I starts with the coronation of Ivan the Terrible and concludes with his return to power after the death of his wife. Part II covers the attempt to assassinate him in 1564. The third part of the saga was never made due to the death of Sergei M. Eisenstein.

Directed by Jan Nemec.
68 minutes; released 2001.
This captivating, innovative film diary finds director Nemec unraveling the threads of his difficult relationship with his mother, who has passed away. In Czech with English subtitles.

Directed by Andrei Nekrasov.
105 minutes; released 2007.
Filmmaker Nekrasov exposes the truth behind a crime that shocked the world and provoked a war of words between Russia and England that continues to this day.

Directed by Peter Glenville.
94 minutes; released 1955.
A cardinal imprisoned in a Communist country is subjected to relentless interrogation by a psychologist. Starring Alec Guinness.

Directed by Viktor Ryzhko.
60 minutes; released 1992.
A documentary about the life of Orthodox saint and martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth Fedorovna, aunt of Tsar Nicholas II.

Directed by Márta Mészáros.
110 minutes; released 1996.
A dramatization of the life of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, the Carmelite nun who was killed at Auschwitz. In French with English subtitles.

Directed by Agnieszka Holland.
117 minutes; released 1988.
A dramatization of the life of Father Jerzy Popielusko, the Polish priest who was murdered by the Communist authorities on account of his support of the Solidarity union.

Produced by St. Innocent/Firebird Videos.
120 minutes; released 1988.
The thousand-year history of the Orthodox Church in Russia.

Directed by Karel Čtveráček.
70 minutes; released 2009.
The reconstruction of Fotoatelier Seidel, a photography studio in Český Krumlov, and the reappearance of a unique collection of almost 140,000 historic photographs provide not only a springboard for telling the moving story of two photographers – father and son – but also a way of bringing home to us lives lived long ago, and the lost culture of the Bohemian Forest borderlands. In Czech and German with Czech, German and English subtitles.

Produced by Ignatius Press.
30 minutes; released 2002.
Well known for his heroic story of surviving 24 years in Russian prison camps, this film about the great Jesuit Fr. Walter Ciszek traces his incredible endurance and struggle for survival.

Directed by Astra Taylor.
71 minutes; released 2005.
Documentary follows the eccentric Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Žižek as he travels around the world lecturing. In English and Slovene dialogue; English subtitles.