Eisenstein: A Life in Conflict tells the dramatic story of this great director's of life and his groundbreaking work -- from his precocious childhood to his explosion on the revolutionary art scene, through his landmark film career and relationships with artists as diverse as James Joyce and Wait Disney, to his untimely death at age fifty. Drawing upon recently released material from the Soviet archives and from psychologically revealing personal letters, diaries and sketches, Bergan sheds new light on the influences of Eisenstein's parents, his childhood and his ambivalent sexuality on his life and work. This is an important biography of a film director whose work displayed a passionate and profound grasp of art and science, of philosophy and religion.