Soviet Montage - Formalism and Andre Bazin - Realism

Pudovkin wanted each shot to be different and have a different meaning. He also wanted it to juxtapose with the previous shot. Each shot should create more meaning and building up to the story. The Kulshekov Effect believes that emotion is not produced by great acting, but with juxtaposition to scenes linked with it. This can be used for some point of view scenes where we can see what the character is seeing and the his reaction to it. The Eisenteinian Montage believes that the film is in the edit. Nothing should be shown in its entirety, but must be able to be linked. In the "Odessa Step" sequence, it shows what is happening in a very straightforward way. This is why critics have criticized this method as being too easy to understand or being too obscure.


Bazin was a French film critic who disliked Classic and Formalistic filmmaking. He believed that montage was just one thing a filmmaker can use. Bazin became in favor of Realism. He loved the limited amounts of edits and the longs shots to let the audience observe themselves. Realism creates a heightened sight of reality within the film. Many technological advances allowed for the moving forward of realistic filming. The long shots allowed for audiences to observe for themselves and let the audience feel a sort of uncomfortable feeling, pushing the boundaries of previous filming strategies.

Realism, Classicism and Formalism: "Arrival of a Train" and "Damsel in Distress"

 "Arrival of a Train"

"Arrival of a Train" is a film by the Lumiere Brothers.

The film is more of a realistic film. There is only one shot used and it is held as long as possible. There are no edits in the film because it is just one continuous shot. The narrative is just the arrival of a train in a train station.

"Damsel in Distress"

Damsel in Distress is more in the category of classicism. This film is very different from "Arrival of a Train" because it has many different continuous shots that develop a story, while "Arrival of a Train" only has one shot and only one point of view. There is a bigger story in "Damsel in Distress" than that in "Arrival of a Train". The film shows the whole story of how the girl got on the tracks and how she is saved also. This is very different from the style of "Arrival of a Train"