why do masterpieces get overlooked?
To me this is his most beautiful film to watch, but his weakest thematically.
Wow that’s quite the spelling of Tarkovsky – also, all of his films are masterpieces. I am of the slim minority who thinks Sacrifice his best film.
I’m with you Allan. I’ve always thought Sacrifice to be his best film. To me it’s his most beautiful and the one that resonated with me the most.
For me nothing beats Stalker, but Offret is a close second tied with Mirror.
I am so intrigued by the idea of Solaris and absolutely love the novel but the film has never hit me like other Tarkovsky films. I own the Criterion so maybe I should watch it again.
my first viewing of NOSTALGHIA left me rather cold, but seeing it again a few times has improved it’s standing among AT’s work immensely. I enjoy it much more than the other non-Russian production, SACRIFICE. Just do, no reason.
I think Nostalghia was a very personal film of his, like The Mirror but with even stronger melancholy of seeing things for the last time.Even his son’s dog is there in the film, even though they are both left behind in Russia! Instant Light would be a great book to look at before watching Nosthalgia, in order to get a better sense for his life in exile! Still, the film is too sentimental for my taste, but nevertheless it has all Tarkovsky’s elements that makes his films so wonderful to watch!
bhikkhu
The 8 minutes long shot of Andrei repeatedly trying to carry the burning candle from one side of the pool to the other is one of the strongest scenes I have ever seen and it still gives me the creeps whenever I see it.
I once read an article in a newspaper or something, in which the author called Tarkowskij’s non-USSR films his weakest, which puzzled me as Nostalghia is one of my alltime favourites.
Of course Nostalghia is not The Mirror, however I always considered Ivan’s childhood and Andrei Rublev his weakest films as they were, in my opinion, films where his ideas on art and filmmaking were not yet completely developed; I, naturally, acknowledge the importance of Ivan’s childhood and Andrei Rublev, as they helped develop his distinctive style, but I personally can more relate to his later films.