Man with a Movie Camera (1929)

Perhaps the most dazzling and sophisticated film, not only of Soviet, but of world silent cinema. Director Dziga Vertov's experimental film grew out of his belief, shared by his editor, Elizaveta Svilova (who was also his wife), and his cinematographer, Mikhail Kaufman (also his brother), that the true goal of cinema should be to present life as it is lived. To that end, the filmmakers offer a day-in-the-life portrait of a city from dawn until dusk, though they actually shot their footage in several cities, including Moscow, Kiev, and Odessa. After an opening statement, there are no words in the film (neither voice-over nor titles), just dazzling imagery, kinetically edited - as a celebration of the modern city with a marked emphasis on its buildings and machinery. Considered a hallmark of cinema, and was one of the pivotal works to transcend the existing conventions of film making.

"Man with a Movie Camera is like a wordless anthem for all cinephiles, directly targeting that je ne sais quoi that makes cinema so powerful." - Montreal Film Journal

"It's a startlingly avant-garde cross-examination of modern life, as well as a lesson in the power of filmmaking and an autopsy of its methods." - TV Guide's Movie Guide