Attack from the Sea

Attack from the Sea (1953) is a Soviet historical drama directed by Mikhail Romm — watch it online on iFILM. Ivan Pereverzev plays Admiral Fyodor Ushakov; Sergei Bondarchuk appears in a supporting role.

This is the second part of Romm's two-film cycle on Ushakov. Late 18th century: Napoleon's France is pushing across Europe, and Suvorov's Russian army is fighting it on land in Italy. The campaign's naval turning point belongs to Ushakov — he leads the Russian fleet to the Greek island of Corfu, held by French forces, and takes a fortress that was not supposed to fall.

Romm made both parts of the dilogy back to back in 1953, at the height of Soviet epic filmmaking — large-scale, formally precise, unapologetically proud of its subject. The film holds up today as both a chronicle of Ushakov's career and a document of how that era chose to tell its own history. Stream Attack from the Sea (1953) online on iFILM.