← Back to Reviews
in
Stalker (1979)
Director: Andrei Tarkovsky
Writers: Arkadiy Strugatskiy (novel), Boris Strugatskiy (novel)
Cast: Alisa Freyndlikh, Aleksandr Kaydanovskiy, Anatoliy Solonitsyn
Genre: Sci Fi Drama
Language: Russian
Stalker (1979)
Director: Andrei Tarkovsky
Writers: Arkadiy Strugatskiy (novel), Boris Strugatskiy (novel)
Cast: Alisa Freyndlikh, Aleksandr Kaydanovskiy, Anatoliy Solonitsyn
Genre: Sci Fi Drama
Language: Russian
"A guide leads two men through an area known as the Zone to find a room that grants wishes."
My first time watching Stalker and I was impressed! Oh, the beauty of it! I loved the opening scene that seemed to go on forever like time had been slowed down, and yet my attention level was high...I was engrossed. What a thing of beauty the gold monochromatic look gave to the film. But what really blew me away was the textures. It was so richly textured, the walls, the furniture, the floor, even the deeply lined face of the Stalker was textured. That my friends is a stunning use of side lighting. BTW, I seen this on a fully restored Criterion DVD, and damn did it look good.
I really liked how the film used monochrome color to represent the world of the Stalker, where he merely existed. But it's in the zone where he comes alive and so did the colors! I loved the look of the zone with the early morning soft light and mist...mist everywhere, like a soft blanket concealing the mysteries of the zone.
And such wonderful shooting locations throughout the entire film. Way too many to mention but each location was a treat to the eyes and really made the story...So did the cinematography and lighting. The use of negative space in the compositions really impart an emotion of poetic peace and yet there's this understated uneasiness that occurs in the zone.
It's amazing how by the actor's reactions, we believe the zone is this place with ever changing mazes, where the laws of physics don't seem to apply and danger is only a misstep away. Yet, we never seen any evidence of that...but I totally believed it, and that's thanks to an intelligent script and really strong acting by the lead (the Stalker). The score too went well with the film and it was used very lightly. Stalker is about a personal experience...it's reflective, as four people go into the zone...The fourth person is the movie viewer. I really felt like I was on the journey with them.
I really liked how the film used monochrome color to represent the world of the Stalker, where he merely existed. But it's in the zone where he comes alive and so did the colors! I loved the look of the zone with the early morning soft light and mist...mist everywhere, like a soft blanket concealing the mysteries of the zone.
And such wonderful shooting locations throughout the entire film. Way too many to mention but each location was a treat to the eyes and really made the story...So did the cinematography and lighting. The use of negative space in the compositions really impart an emotion of poetic peace and yet there's this understated uneasiness that occurs in the zone.
It's amazing how by the actor's reactions, we believe the zone is this place with ever changing mazes, where the laws of physics don't seem to apply and danger is only a misstep away. Yet, we never seen any evidence of that...but I totally believed it, and that's thanks to an intelligent script and really strong acting by the lead (the Stalker). The score too went well with the film and it was used very lightly. Stalker is about a personal experience...it's reflective, as four people go into the zone...The fourth person is the movie viewer. I really felt like I was on the journey with them.