His films may be considered slow for some, but for me, its poetry in motion. Unfairly accused of being pofaced, there is also a lot of wise humour in this film if you care to look for it. As the film opens, two astronauts have died in a space station circling the planet, and the survivors have sent back alarming messages. The two other scientists there tell the psychologist of strange occurrences in the station, and the oceans eerie ability to materialize their thoughts. Andrei tarkovskys magnum opus offers a stark, spectacular reminder of what it means to be human. Realizing the problems of science fiction movies, tarkovsky set. In andrei tarkovskys solaris 1972, there is a recurring theme of reflective surfaces, such as mirrors and ponds.
Filmul, care este o ecranizare a romanului cu acela. But that is precisely what makes this film so fascinating. Solaris tells the story of a planet that reads minds, and obliges its visitors by devising and providing people they have lost, and miss. In the original english film screenplay, snow states regarding solaris, personally, i think its god. He finds the station rundown and the two remaining scientists cold and secretive. Feb 05, 2014 ive only seen tarkovskys original so i cannot compare, but while films never need to be remade, im not too damning of the idea when the film in question is a 1972 russian art film. This article is a critical analysis of the year 2002 movie solaris. It was my first experience of tarkovsky, and at first i balked. Tarkovsky apparently despised kubircks film for various reasons, as tarkovsky felt that 2001 was ultimately cold and sterile lopate. A film set aboard a lonely, halfabandoned space station orbiting the equally enigmatic titular planet, solaris provides a more probing look into the. This film is a must watch for any genre fan, and i highly recommend it to viewers who are looking for a truly grand film to watch, then solaris is that film.
In a society driven to explore the farthest reaches of the universe in search of truth, the solaris ocean provides an introspective catalyst for probing the deepest regions of the. After the mysterious demise of one of the three scientists on the base, the main character is sent out to replace him. In the moody prelude, we see the protagonist, a space psychologist named kris kelvin, staring at underwater reeds as though they were a drowned womans tresses. The catch22 is that the planet knows no more than its visitors know about these absent people. Steven soderberghs solaris 2002 is a challenging film. Set in an unspecified future, the film opens on earth where psychiatrist kris kelvin donatas banionis is preparing for a trip into deep space. The author has this grand meaning and he tells a story to promote the meaning. Solyaris, andrei tarkovskys famous science fiction film released in 1972. The film is a meditative psychological drama occurring mostly aboard a space station orbiting the fictional planet solaris. During its days of production, tarkovsky used to ask his cast and crew what they thought was the most important episode in the film.
Solaris is one of those classics that virtually every critic will assure you is amazing, but when you get right down to it, the films nothing but a pretentious mess. Andrei tarkovskys 1972 film solaris may be the most famous adaptation of polish writer stanislaw lems 1961 novel about an astronaut plagued by apparitions extracted from his own subconscious by an extraterrestrial entity, but its not the first that honor belongs to a lowbudget 1968 soviet television production titled solyaris. The author of the book, stanislaw lem, didnt like the film at all and thought that tarkovsky turned into a crime and punishment set in space. His hunch paid off, and solaris 1972 went on to take the grand jury prize at.
Jun 07, 2019 hi everyone, solaris has been on my list to explain and analyse for ages and im really pleased to be able to share this video with you on my film analysis series. The films of russian director andrei tarkovsky are more like environments than entertainments. One more vote for tartovskys solaris being glacially slow, alienating, and an excellent film. The electronic music score was performed by eduard artemyev. Solyaris is a 1972 soviet science fiction art film based on stanislaw lems novel of the same name published in 1961.
The film was cowritten and directed by andrei tarkovsky, and stars donatas banionis and natalya bondarchuk. Solaris is an exploration beyond the vessel of humanity, a journey to extend the territorial bounds of man, only to find the vast frontier of his own subconscious. Tarkovskys film remains one of the most jarring and unforgettable depictions of the impact of war on children. Ground control has been receiving mysterious transmissions from the three remaining residents of the solaris space station. Solyaris is a 1972 soviet science fiction art film based on. This film probes mans thoughts and conscience, as it follows a psychologist who is sent to a space station situated over the mysterious solaris ocean. To an extent perhaps either somewhat small or even somewhat large, tarkovskys 1972 science fiction opus solaris is a response to kubricks science fiction masterpiece 2001.
A space odyssey, tarkovsky takes an intellectual approach to metaphysical issues. Solaris and the satellite are metaphors for god and earth. So shmoop considers this read middling hard, and as such, weve placed it smack in the middle of the toughometer. Throughout the film, this intelligence is not always accurate in its representations. Played by the stolid donatas banionis, a russian glenn ford with five o. Why solaris is the greatest science fiction film ever made. Which is good, because theres a lot of dry technical mumbo jumbo, and the plot is vague and drifty and suggestive rather than pageturning and eventfilled.
This film inexplicably does not appear on many, if any, all time great lists. But id suggest that you read the book by stanislaw lem if you enjoyed the film. Tarkovskys fame rests on only a handful of films, two of which were science fiction, this film and stalker, based on. Over the seven featurelength films to his credit, tarkovskys cinema. In this film adapted from the novel by stanislaw lem, the alien planet solaris is a deeply fascinating subject for researchers, but an exploratory crew seems to have gone mad while stationed there. Especially, in the case of the films of auteur andrei tarkovsky, when those areas uncharted happen to be both the spark and the prelude to the things of the past. Solaris is more than a film, its a deeply affecting cinematic experience. Ive only seen tarkovskys original so i cannot compare, but while films never need to be remade, im not too damning of the idea when the film in question is a 1972 russian art film. Its a gratuitously selfindulgent piece of cinema thats not nearly as profound at it may think it is. Doesnt sound like much of a science fiction story, does it.
The movie is designed to make a philosophical point about our existence, which was made clear with the line. The plot revolves around a planet, solaris, with a kind of living ocean. Jan 19, 2003 i saw his 1972 film solaris at the chicago film festival that year. Solyaris is a 1972 russian science fiction art film adaptation of the novel solaris 1961, cowritten and directed by andrei tarkovsky. The scenes where kelvin begs kharis forgiveness and levitates in her arms are the film s great triumphs. A space odyssey tarkovsky apparently despised kubircks film for various reasons, as tarkovsky felt that 2001 was ultimately cold and sterile lopate. If youd like to see more film analysis videos then please leave suggestions for films youd like to see discussed in the. Solaris 1972 is not a remake of the 1968 film, because the 1968 film was not used as the source for the 1972 film. The scientific mission has stalled out because the meager skeleton crew of three scientists have. Solaris, an american film directed by steven soderbergh, starring george clooney and produced by james cameron. Solaris 1972 film stanislaw lem wiki fandom powered by.
Exploring the frontier of the subconscious senses of. Tarkovskys artistic vision, poetic, refined, subtle, yet stunning, has the capability of making a profound cerebral impact upon the viewer with breathtaking scenery, mystic and melancholic atmospherics, a compelling storyline, and exceptional acting. One of his wonderful films among his splendid repertoire is solaris. The film won the grand prix at the 1972 cannes film festival. The film begins with a placid lake, and a leaf drifts across slowly, like an island drifting down the current. Solaris is short, and the language and sentence structure is straightforward. Exploring the multilayered relationship between music, sound, film image and narrative space, pontara provides penetrating and innovative close readings of solaris 1972, mirror 1975, stalker 1979, nostalghia 1983 and the sacrifice 1986 and in turn deeply enriches critical understanding of tarkovskys films and their relation to the. When you read about the mimoids struggling to form images, you can imagine stanislaw lem, seated at his desk, brow creased, trying to form the image of a mimoid. Unlike 2001, however, solaris is saturated with grief, which grips the film even before it leaves earth. When cosmonaut and psychologist kris kelvin is dispatched to investigate, he experiences the same strange phenomena that afflict the solaris crew, sending him on a voyage into the darkest recesses of his consciousness. This film also emphasizes the human relationships and again excludes lems scientific and philosophical themes. Solaris 1972 an independent study in filmanalysis, technology.
We meet kris kelvin, who is spending his time near the lake, looking into it. Which means that solaris symbolizes solaris, and vice versa. This image, waterrain inside buildings, is a common image for tarkovsky. The film opens with a view of a lake, as seaweed undulate beneath the current.
I have watched it more than once, the only time i fell asleep was watching it at 2 am while drinking gin. Tarkovskys fame rests on only a handful of films, two of which were science fiction, this film and stalker, based on a story by the strugatski brothers and made in 1979. Hi everyone, solaris has been on my list to explain and analyse for ages and im really pleased to be able to share this video with you on my film analysis series. The mimoids, then, are a symbol of writingand of solaris itself. Its a gratuitously selfindulgent piece of cinema thats not nearly as profound at it. Not that many people outside of sf and arthouse film fans will have seen the original id have thought. Nov 22, 2002 solaris tells the story of a planet that reads minds, and obliges its visitors by devising and providing people they have lost, and miss. With solaris, the legendary russian filmmaker andrei. Oracle solaris cluster essentials oracle solaris system administration series by tim read. Watch the film sober, and mid day, for an excellent experience. Dec 12, 2019 i want to share a great video with you.
I havent seen the 1972 version of the film for a long time. Solaris vene keeles o on andrei tarkovski film aastast 1972. May 24, 2011 unlike 2001, however, solaris is saturated with grief, which grips the film even before it leaves earth. Based on stanislaw lems novel, this 1972 allegory takes place on a space station near a mysterious pl. But then the overall shape of the film floated into view, there were images of startling beauty, then developments that questioned the fundamental.
Andrei tarkovsky considered this particular episode to be. Whats his point here, and does his point gain new meaning when we later become aware of what is happening on solaris. Certainly it is uniquely brilliant artistically and seems to be different every time you view it, the dynamics and emotions of the characters shifting hypnotically. A possible explanation for it in solaris is that it identifies the house as a creation of the alien consciousness on the planet.
It was long and slow and the dialogue seemed deliberately dry. May 06, 2017 although solaris retains some of the softer scifi aspects of lems novel, tarkovskys pacing is less moved by narrative detail than thematic and metaphorical suggestion, which imbues the film, typical of the directors entire oeuvre, with a herculean amount of objects that appear charged with meaning beyond their immediate purpose. I saw his 1972 film solaris at the chicago film festival that year. But thats not the typical usage of the word remake the usual term in english for that would be adaptation. After a human explorer falls into it, it starts exhibiting more unusual properties. Its impossible to put into words what i feel about this beautiful poem. May 04, 2009 one more vote for tartovskys solaris being glacially slow, alienating, and an excellent film. If you like you could say that solaris 1972 is a remake of the original book, since the book is the source material. If you are paying attention when you watch solaris, you realize that there is more meaning to the story than there is mere story.
Although solaris retains some of the softer scifi aspects of lems novel, tarkovskys pacing is less moved by narrative detail than thematic and metaphorical suggestion, which imbues the film, typical of the directors entire oeuvre, with a herculean amount of objects that appear charged with meaning beyond their immediate purpose. Solaris 1972 film stanislaw lem wiki fandom powered. Solaris is a unique science fiction film that explores the meaning of being human and challenges its audience to undertake a greater examination of their own conscious reality. This is my favourite film and possibly the best film ever made. Meer lezen the opening scene of tarkovskys solaris. Scientists try to understand the secrets of the mysterious planet solaris, but find themselves slowly. Kris kelvin donatas banionis, a melancholy psychologist with a troubled past, is called in to investigate. The solaris mission has established a base on a planet that appears to host some kind of intelligence, but the details are hazy and very secret. Released in 1972, solaris was brought to the screen by andrei tarkovsky. Tarkovskys artistic vision, poetic, refined, subtle, yet stunning, has the capability of making a profound cerebral impact upon the viewer with breathtaking scenery, mystic and melancholic atmospherics, a compelling storyline, and. But thats solaris for youits not much of a science fiction story. While hardly a conventional film, solaris is less longtakedriven, and stands as a. Kris kelvin grieves for his exwife, rheya, who killed herself.
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