The Song of the Rivers (1954)

Original title

Lied der Ströme

Directed by

Joop Huisken, Robert Ménégoz, Joris Ivens

Genre

documentary film

Country

German Democratic Republic, Germany

Runtime

1h 37m

Rating

6.3 of 10 from 3 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This documentary follows workers and landscapes along six major rivers around the world. It celebrates labor, industry, and international solidarity through music and imagery.

celebratorylyricalindustrialhopefulgrandpropagandisticearnestmontage-like

What happens

The Song of the Rivers (German: Das Lied der Ströme) is a 1954 documentary film production by the East Germany film studio DEFA. Dutch filmmaker Joris Ivens was the leading director. The sprawling film celebrates international workers movements along six major rivers: the Volga, Mississippi, Ganges, Nile, Amazon and the Yangtze. Shot in many countries by different film crews, and later edited by Ivens, Song of the Rivers begins with a lyrical montage of landscapes and laborers and proceeds to glorify labor and modern industrial machinery. The musical score is by Dmitri Shostakovich, with lyrics written by Bertolt Brecht, and songs performed by German communism's star Ernst Busch and famous American actor, singer and activist Paul Robeson who also narrates. Song of the Rivers is an ode to international solidarity. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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