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Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

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Re: Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

#31
post #9
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Both Tarkovsky and Soderbergh have almost completely missed the point of Solaris, the book. The book is about communication, or failure to do so. It's a great book to read, highly recommend.

Tarkovsky made films about what he cared about and what interested him. His Solaris wasn't really meant to be about Lem's book, just as his Stalker isn't about Roadside Picnic. Those books simply offer a setting where he could explore his own ideas.

I don't know, this might be the actual reason... or it's just that he couldn't really put the book into film. It's very difficult to do so, some may say it's just impossible since the mediums are so different. But your answer has been used before by people defending this or that director, and sometimes it just seems like a cop out, "Oh, he didn't really care about the book".

P.S. Sorry if I sound a bit harsh. Not my intention.

Re: Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

#32
There are some good Russian movies that are somewhat unknown to the Western public. For example, I wonder if any of you have seen these:

Georgiy Daneliya. "Kin-dza-dza!" (1986) [1]

Larisa Shepitko. "The Ascent" (1977) [2]

Leonid Maryagin. "Public enemy - Bukharin" (1990) [3]

Aleksey German. "Twenty Days Without War" (1977) [4]

Aleksey German. "Khrustalyov, My Car!" (1998) [5]

Stanislav Rostotskiy. "A zori zdes tikhie" (1972) [6]

Mikhail Kalatozov. "True Friends" (1954) [7]

Mikhail Kozakov. "Pokrov Gates" (1982) [8]

Georgiy Daneliya. "Osenniy marafon" (1979) [9]

Elem Klimov. "Come and See" (1985) [10]

Victor Ginzburg. "Generation П" (2011) [11]

Sergei Gerasimov. "The Journalist" (1967) [12]

(this one is Polish) Juliusz Machulski. "Sexmission" (1984) [13]

(also Polish) Krzysztof Kieslowski. "The Decalogue" (1989) [14]

[1] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091341/

[2] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075404/

[3] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100891/

[4] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074447/

[5] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0156701/

[6] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068161/

[7] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047650/

[8] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083465/

[9] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079679/

[10] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091251/

[11] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0459748/

[12] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062524/

[13] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088083/

[14] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092337/

Re: Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

#33
post #11

still waiting for a high quality HD transfer of Stalker...

You'll have more luck keeping an eye out for 35mm screenings near you. I saw it on 35mm a few weeks ago, the picture and color was stunning. Much better than any bluray release would be :) I wonder why there's no bluray, it might be caught up in some licensing hell. There's not even a good US domestic DVD.

More concretely, if you live in/near NYC, follow http://screenslate.com - we get a wealth of repertory film screenings all the time. I've managed to see Andrei Rublev, The Mirror, Nostalgia (twice!), and Stalker all in 35mm over the past couple years.

Re: Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

#34
post #32

There are some good Russian movies that are somewhat unknown to the Western public. For example, I wonder if any of you have seen these: Georgiy Daneliya. "Kin-dza-dza!" (1986) [1] Larisa Shepitko. "The Ascent" (1977) [2] Leonid Maryagin. "Public enemy - Bukharin" (1990) [3] Aleksey German. "Twenty Days Without War" (1977) [4] Aleksey German. "Khrustalyov, My Car!" (1998) [5] Stanislav Rostotskiy. "A zori zdes tikhie…

I just watched German's MY FRIEND, IVAN LAPSHIN a few days ago, it was excellent. Highly anticipating his final one, HARD TO BE A GOD..! I'll have to watch MY CAR soon.

Sokurov (mentored by Tarkovsky) can be good, though he's quite mainstream as well.

There's actually a STALKER parody by some other Russian, I forget the name.

Re: Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

#35
post #11

still waiting for a high quality HD transfer of Stalker...

Yes! I'm pretty surprised Criterion hasn't released one. By the way, just a few days ago Kino released a Blu-Ray edition of Nostalghia . http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00GA9F2PI

There are also blurays of OFFRET, ZERKALO, RUBLEV, IVAN, SOLYARIS. Wow, only just realized STALKER is the only one missing.

Oh, and the fantastic VOYAGE IN TIME! This one is often overlooked, but it's in fact directed by Tarkovsky and has some beautiful shots. It's a documentary of some of the processes in making NOSTALGHIA.

Re: Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

#36
post #32

There are some good Russian movies that are somewhat unknown to the Western public. For example, I wonder if any of you have seen these: Georgiy Daneliya. "Kin-dza-dza!" (1986) [1] Larisa Shepitko. "The Ascent" (1977) [2] Leonid Maryagin. "Public enemy - Bukharin" (1990) [3] Aleksey German. "Twenty Days Without War" (1977) [4] Aleksey German. "Khrustalyov, My Car!" (1998) [5] Stanislav Rostotskiy. "A zori zdes tikhie…

I just watched German's MY FRIEND, IVAN LAPSHIN a few days ago, it was excellent. Highly anticipating his final one, HARD TO BE A GOD..! I'll have to watch MY CAR soon. Sokurov (mentored by Tarkovsky) can be good, though he's quite mainstream as well. There's actually a STALKER parody by some other Russian, I forget the name.

Thanks for a reply!

Aleksey German is a true genius. IMO, one of the greatest directors ever lived. I've watched all of his works. "Khrustalyov, My Car!" is a true masterpiece, a film that is of great depth. But, unlike his other works, with "Khrustalyov, My Car!" you need to know quite a bit about Stalin era to feel it's completeness and integrity. There is nothing random in it.

I recommend you to watch "Public enemy - Bukharin" by Leonid Maryagin. It is an amazing film, about the rise of the Stalin's terror. Sadly, it is not widely known. You might want to check out the list of historical personalities mentioned there before watching. There are some truly kafkaesque moments in it.

Larisa Shepitko is also a genius.

One of my greatest passions is the trilogy by Sergei Gerasimov ("The Journalist"[1], "U ozera"[2], "To Love a Person"[3] ), the ones that he has not only directed, but wrote scripts for. However, I feel that these films might appear cryptic for people that haven't lived in Soviet Union.

[1] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062524/

[2] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065140/

[3] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0171498/

Re: Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

#37
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just watched German's MY FRIEND, IVAN LAPSHIN a few days ago, it was excellent. Highly anticipating his final one, HARD TO BE A GOD..! I'll have to watch MY CAR soon. Sokurov (mentored by Tarkovsky) can be good, though he's quite mainstream as well. There's actually a STALKER parody by some other Russian, I forget the name.

Thanks for a reply! Aleksey German is a true genius. IMO, one of the greatest directors ever lived. I've watched all of his works. "Khrustalyov, My Car!" is a true masterpiece, a film that is of great depth. But, unlike his other works, with "Khrustalyov, My Car!" you need to know quite a bit about Stalin era to feel it's completeness and integrity. There is nothing random in it. I recommend you to watch "Public enem…

Anything in particular I can read / read up on to familiarize myself before watching MY CAR?

Let's see, I have THE ASCENT but haven't watched it yet.

Another promising director is Mikhail Kalatozov, I've been meaning to watch SOY CUBA for ages... Even though I already have an original screenprint poster of it :V

Can't find anything available by Maryagin unfortunately. Wonder if there's a different spelling I should use maybe.

Re: Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

#38
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just watched German's MY FRIEND, IVAN LAPSHIN a few days ago, it was excellent. Highly anticipating his final one, HARD TO BE A GOD..! I'll have to watch MY CAR soon. Sokurov (mentored by Tarkovsky) can be good, though he's quite mainstream as well. There's actually a STALKER parody by some other Russian, I forget the name.

Thanks for a reply! Aleksey German is a true genius. IMO, one of the greatest directors ever lived. I've watched all of his works. "Khrustalyov, My Car!" is a true masterpiece, a film that is of great depth. But, unlike his other works, with "Khrustalyov, My Car!" you need to know quite a bit about Stalin era to feel it's completeness and integrity. There is nothing random in it. I recommend you to watch "Public enem…

Alexander Kaidanovsky, from Stalker, has also directed some things. Been meaning to watch A SIMPLE DEATH.

Re: Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

#39
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks for a reply! Aleksey German is a true genius. IMO, one of the greatest directors ever lived. I've watched all of his works. "Khrustalyov, My Car!" is a true masterpiece, a film that is of great depth. But, unlike his other works, with "Khrustalyov, My Car!" you need to know quite a bit about Stalin era to feel it's completeness and integrity. There is nothing random in it. I recommend you to watch "Public enem…

Anything in particular I can read / read up on to familiarize myself before watching MY CAR? Let's see, I have THE ASCENT but haven't watched it yet. Another promising director is Mikhail Kalatozov, I've been meaning to watch SOY CUBA for ages... Even though I already have an original screenprint poster of it :V Can't find anything available by Maryagin unfortunately. Wonder if there's a different spelling I should u…

Tomorrow I'll write you a reply, now I'm going to bed. : - )

Re: Tarkovsky Films Free Online (2010)

#40
post #29
post #2

Watching Stalker may forever alter your taste in cinematography, it's so beautiful. Solaris is also good (watching it back to back with the Clooney remake is an interesting experience); Lem pretty much hated all three adaptations ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solaris_(novel) ), an adaptation that reflects the alienness that he wanted to underline would be an interesting movie. You might want to think about what repr…

I watched Stalker years after reading the novel it was based on. It was the first Tarkovsky film I watched and I didn't even know who Tarkovsky was at the time. My thoughts immediately after watching it were "wow, this is bad, the book is so much better", and then I found out that this is actually a critically acclaimed movie. I don't get it.

That's a common reaction among people who see a Kubrick film for the first time as well. The best (only) advice is to watch it again, in context with other films from the same era.
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