Dziga and His Brothers is currently streaming on The Criterion Channel

Dziga and His Brothers (2002)DocumentaryRating 37/100

The fascinating and tumultuous lives of Mikhail, Boris, and Denis Kaufman—the last better known as revolutionary Soviet director Dziga Vertov—are the focus of this illuminating documentary. All visionary artists who pushed the stylistic boundaries of cinema in its formative years, the brothers constituted what may be the most dazzlingly innovative filmmaking family in cinema history, even as their lives were frequently beset by personal tragedy and political strife. Using rare archival footage from Russian state film archives and private collections, the film traces the brothers’ lives and art from Bialystok to Moscow, Paris, and Hollywood.

Cast: Abaya Kaufman, Bernard Eisenschitz, Marianna Tavrog, Andrew Kaufman, Lev Roshal, Sidney Lumet

Director: Evgeny Tsymbal