ADMIRAL Movie Review: A Rehabilitation of White Russian

Admiral, a blockbuster of Russia in 2008, tells a story about the rise and fall of Kolchak, a leader of white russian movement. He went to the Russo-Japanese War, WWI, then became the commander of the white russian army in the russian civil war. After 'liberating' several major cities, his army was not several hundred kilometres from Moscow, the red capital. Lenin then started his propaganda to launch a counterattack of some 200,000 people, most of which are workers and peasants. Then Kolchak was defeated and sentenced to death.

A movie about a civil war is always sad. Especially this one. The Red army fought so hard against the alliance of former upper classes. But what for? Ten years later, most of them were wiped out by Stalin.

The movie, of course, didn't say anything good about the Red army. It seems that they were a group of bogans wanting the power. While the White army represents the elegancy, the beauty, the order and the courage. There was one scene in the movie that when all the ammunition run out, the White army just march to the fierce gun powers with their bayonets.

The movie, however, didn't say a work about the dictatorship and brutal about this commandar. It didn't say anything about the strategy he used at all.

Kolchak was never rehabilitated in Russia. Two requests have been denied by court.


I'll talk more about the White Russians. After russian revolution, the people who were 'revoluted', who were normally military officers, nobility, the rich, fled overseas. Some of them went to China. Harbin, a major city near China-Russian border, once was full of Russians. These russians then had difficult times in the Japanese occupation time in the puppet state Manchukuo. Many left China and went back to Russia, only to be arrest in the Great Purge. Others who remained then found them to be sent back after WWII when Russian army won the war and liberated that city.

Russians in Shanghai was a different story. Days were tough in this big city so some women ended up with being prostitutes. Others who were well-educated joined Ballet groups or orchestra. After WWII however, red China forced them to leave. Some of them fled to Australia and other countries.


In addition, the movie shows how wonderful the Russian rail network was. Simply there was train from every major city to every major city. Taking trains in winter is an extragvagance. The whole world was covered by snow while the carriage is warm as spring.

image: here

 The love story, I have to say, is pretty boring. The last scene apparently was set to dedicate to the Titanic. However it seems the director failed to develop the love story further and I don't see any relationship between the love story and the main story line.