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Tarkovsky is my favorite 20th century film director bar none. Here's are some reasons why and why you might also be interested in his films: (1) He described h
by Jd 13y ago
Tarkovsky is my favorite 20th century film director bar none. Here's are some reasons why and why you might also be interested in his films:
(1) He described his art as poetry applied to cinema or "sculpting in time," a fundamentally different conceptual idea of the cinematic art that he went to a great length to clarify (in a book of the same name, highly recommended).
(2) His use of color is incredible. Some films, especially stalker, are near black and white with incredibly vibrant and poignant uses of green. This is a bit like Bergman at his best, but even better.
(3) He was deeply religious in a "mystical" sense, with a lot of respect for past traditions, but not in a dogmatic sense and with appreciation for both Christian and pagan elements (see Andrei Rublev for both aspects)
(4) He knew other European traditions extremely well. Ivan's childhood is a meditation on the war with Germany, including shots of Duehrer's prints. Nostalgia involves his time in Italy traditions including Madonna cults and important artwork. Sacrifice has Shakespearean references, Rembrandt, Japanese samurai, and magical traditions. In general, his films are full of long shots of important pieces of Renaissance art with profound meaning.
(5) He spent a lot of time thinking about the integration of technology and the rest of life. Solaris is the futuristic spaceship version of this. Stalker is the apocalyptic version of this.
I think in a century Tarkovsky will rightly be credited as inventing a whole new type of cinema, his way of approaching it was fundamentally in tune with a "mystical" sense and integrated with other forms of visual art (i.e. the long gaze you have at a painting), and the punctuated, rhythmic reading of poetry.
- kaeluka 13y ago"Sculpting in time" -- what a great expression. The lorry scene in stalker is what I think of when I hear that.
- zbyszek 13y ago"Sculpting in time" is also the title of Tarkovsky's book which I haven't read, but I now have a new impetus to do so. Interesting about colour - perhaps a "less is more" thing. The end of Andrei Rublev is breathtaking, for instance. I saw Mirror three times at the cinema, and there are not many flicks I can say that about.
- wooptoo 13y ago> (2) His use of color is incredible. Some films, especially stalker, are near black and white with incredibly vibrant and poignant uses of green. Actually the first part of Stalker was (re)shot in black and white because they damaged some part of the original film reel. After about 40 minutes or so into the movie it switches to color. The tint you're talking about is a technique created by Tarkovsky which alters the film temperature: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079944/trivia?ref_=tt_ql_2 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079944/trivia?ref_=tt_ql_2
- yevy 13y agoWhile the official story is that the film stock was accidentally damaged during development, it is also known that Tarkovsky was unhappy with how those scenes were originally filmed. He wanted to reshoot them, but the budget committee turned down his request. Shortly afterwards the film was mysteriously ruined. The committee had no choice but to let Tarkovsky film the scenes again. Since they could not afford to buy more color film stock, the reshoot was done in black and white.
- krrrh 13y agoI've been a huge Tarkovsky fan for years too. Last year I saw the Chris Marker film on him and I heartily recommend it if you haven't seen it. That also goes for anyone who's read the above and wants to know more about the method of his work.
- VeejayRampay 13y agoAlso his son appears in Werner Herzog's "Happy People: A Year in the Taiga", which is both odd and awesome.