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The First

Name: The First
Director: Dmitriy Suvorov
Released: 2017
Duration: 96 min

Representation Score

0.7/10

Minimal

2017

Director

Dmitriy Suvorov

Runtime

96 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

The film operates as a traditional historical epic centered on 18th-century Russian imperial expansion. Its narrative structure emphasizes male leadership and the fulfillment of state-mandated duties within a rigid military hierarchy. Although a female character is included, her role is tied to romantic clichés, which limits the film’s ability to challenge traditional gender norms or provide significant women's ability to drive the story. Overall, the work lacks complexity in representing diverse identities. It serves as a standard historical reconstruction that upholds the social and ethnic homogeneity of its time.

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Category Breakdown

Does The First have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The film follows the social norms of its 1735 setting. There are no depictions of LGBTQ+ identities or same-sex relationships.

How does The First portray gender?

Limited

The story is driven by a male-dominated military structure. A female character joins the expedition, but her role is defined by romantic interest rather than independent action.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The First?

Limited

The cast reflects the historical homogeneity of a Russian imperial expedition. The story centers on a specific ethnic and national identity from the 1730s.

How does The First represent religion and culture?

Limited

The film highlights duty, patriotism, and imperial goals. It celebrates state-centric ideas of progress and the mapping of new territories.

Does The First include disability representation?

Minimal

The story focuses on external environmental challenges like frost and hunger. There is no mention of characters dealing with physical or neurodivergent disabilities.

Present on Screen

Offers a detailed historical reconstruction of an 18th-century Arctic expedition.
Captures the intense environmental pressures and physical rigors of maritime exploration.

Limited or Absent

Lacks diverse representation beyond the primary ethnic and national group.
Female characters are limited to traditional romantic motivations rather than independent roles.
Does not explore multi-layered identities or subvert historical social hierarchies.

Official Synopsis

Vasily Pronchishchev and Vasily Chelyuskin were young lieutenants of the Russia fleet, who set out from Yakutsk along the Lena River to the Arctic Ocean on a sailing ship under the leadership of the commander Vitus Bering in the summer of 1735. Contrary to the imperial prohibition, incredible trials and deadly danger lying ahead of all the members of this expedition, a young girl enamored with one of the characters got onto this ship. However, neither storms or severe northern frosts and hunger were able to stop them, since fulfilling of their duty, reaching of the most northeastern point of Eurasia and putting of the vast Arctic territories on the world maps were their main purpose in life.

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