Andrei Tarkovsky

 Andrei Tarkovsky




Ivan's Childhood (1962)

Andrei Rublev (1966)



RANKED:


2. Ivan's Childhood (1962)


Although it was his debut feature-length film, 1962's "Ivan's Childhood" proves Andrei Tarkovsky's artistic stamp on the cinematic landscape. Centering on a 12-year-old orphan during the Second World War, the film marks an important shift in Soviet cinema. Tarkovsky's inclusion of nature itself as a subjective observer of humanity's violence instilled a spiritual component to Soviet cinema not yet seen. The quiet observations of the bleakest and darkest aspects of reality elevate the film to Bressonian levels of nihilistic modernism. Although he would go on to achieve the pinnacle of artistry in cinema, "Ivan's Childhood" marks Tarkovsky's first venture into the spiritual realm of the human soul.





1. Andrei Rublev (1966)


One might think that watching a three hour historical biography on a Russian painter from the Middle Ages might be a dull experience. However, in the hands of Andrei Tarkovsky, it becomes a spiritual event. "Andrei Rublev" is a 1966 Soviet film that details the life of the titular Russian painter and his trials and tribulations. Throughout the film, the viewer watches some pretty horrific stuff happening all around Rublev, which drives him to stop speaking and stop painting for decades. The viewer might come to the same conclusions as Rublev: Why paint if paintings will just be destroyed? Why speak the word of God if God allows for such despair? Why have hope when all hopes will ultimately be dashed? In the final scenes, Rublev discovers the answers to these questions and finds a reason to speak and paint again. Life may be full of pain, suffering, and despair, but we must passionately live, create, and rejoice regardless. Tarkovsky's masterpiece beautifully depicts an artist in crisis, and perhaps a humanity and nation in crisis. But, in the end, Tarkovsky finds that his work is worth crafting and that life is worth living.

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