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64 Fragment of An Empire
ANALYSIS
Ermler, during his long career, has been extraordinarily successful, as his Soviet prizes prove, because he has managed to serve satisfactorily the cause of propanganda as well as art. It comes as no surprise that the theme of Fragment, the marvelous accomplishments of communist life, is artistically and entertainingly presented. This is done by having the achievements of the revolution viewed through the fresh, child-like eyes of a man who has recently regained his memory. The film achieves a kind of fairy-tale quality. Just as pumpkins turn into carriages, so do shacks and hovels metamorphose into tall buildings and empty squares burgeon forth with statutes of Lenin — the inspirational source, the "godfather," of this new material and spiritual wealth.
There is a disarming charm to this naive character's journey to knowledge and fulfillment. Before the film ends, he is even lecturing his fellow workers on small points of the communist program! He is contrasted in his idealism to the cynical husband who, ironically paid to spread communist ideas, is revealed in his actions, and even in the decor of his home, as a petty-bourgeois, a fragment of the old empire of cruelty, ignorance, and lack of communal purpose. *
Because the film was made for a purpose, one should then perhaps examine at least briefly the implications of the film's message. The hero is ritually cleansed of his Czarist and personal past in the shower room. The ideal life of a Soviet citizen is implied in the asexual dormitory life, where desires of individuality, private gain, and even family life are sublimated to animated political discussion. In this odd version of Plato's Republic, it is patently obvious that the Party — at least in terms of the film — is interested in man as a social being and not in the private aspects of his personality. That is why the hero first seeks a job and is well on the way towards complete political adjustment before there is a meeting with his wife. The implication is "First things first." His personal happiness is essentially irrelevant to his function as a citizen of the state. He may have lost his wife but since marriage has more than a hint of the bourgois it is not as important as his love for Lenin and his co-workers.
In spite of the obvious message of Fragment, its propaganda is not offensive; Ermler infuses his message successfully and achieves artistic worth in spite of limitations. The naive simplicity and dogged good will of this Russian Rip Van Winkle redeem the crude flag waving and allow us to view the pervasive shots of Lenin without distaste. But of course time and distance may lend enchantment.
Ermler's theme is broad; he sketches in the aftermath of the revolution, the horrors of war, the return of memory, the vitality of city life, the feeling of comradery, working conditions in a factory, and a domestic squabble. What so easily could have been a disorganized tangle of shots of modern Russia is brilliantly held together. Part of this coherency is achieved by the use of a central character, but Ermler does
Tor a fuller description of the plot and some of the high points see Paul Rotha's Film Till Now (pp. 221-22, 248-49) and the Museum's Film Notes (p. 55.)