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“Stalker”, together with “Mirror” and “Solaris”, has perhaps become something of a holy grail for film enthusiasts and cinephiles worldwide, manifesting Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky’s reputation as one of the most discussed and universally liked artists (and don’t you even dare criticize him) of the medium. Considering the almost universal outbreak of joy when Criterion announced a newly restored version of the film in 2017 along with a limited theatrical re-release, the admiration for the craft of this man will not cease but rather increase, given the universal nature of his art as well.

Synopsis

The stalker (Aleksandr Kaydanovskiy) lives with his family at the border of an area only known as the Zone, making a sparse living by giving people tours into the forbidden areas to a place called The Room, a legendary location where the innermost desires of a person would be fulfilled. Even...

“Three men can’t foul it up in one day.”

“Why can’t we? Sure we can.”

“Stalker”, together with “Mirror” and “Solaris”, has perhaps become something of a holy grail for film enthusiasts and cinephiles worldwide, manifesting Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky’s reputation as one of the most discussed and universally liked artists (and don’t you even dare criticize him) of the medium. Considering the almost universal outbreak of joy when Criterion announced a newly restored version of the film in 2017 along with a limited theatrical re-release, the admiration for the craft of this man will not cease but rather increase, given the universal nature of his art as well.

Of course, one of the aspects of Tarkovsky’s career, one which might have played its important role in building his reputation, was his own set of rules, poetics for film similar to Aristotle’s...

Stalker Blu-ray Review Stalker (1979) Blu-Ray Review, a movie directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, starring Aleksandr Kaydanovskiy, Nikolay Grinko , and Anatolly Solonitsyn Release Date: May, 1979 Plot “A guide leads two men through an area known as the Zone to find a room that grants wishes.” Disc Specifications Run Time: 161 Minutes Format: Blu-Ray Resolution: 1080p Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1 Language: Russian (Lcpm [...]

Continue reading: Blu-ray Review: Stalker (1979): A Metaphysical Journey Through Fear...

Chicago – Modern viewers may be more familiar with Steven Soderbergh & George Clooney’s remake of “Solaris,” a good film on its own merits as it’s so different from its source in tone, but the massively influential original version by the legendary Andrei Tarkovsky holds a far more prominent place in film history. Tarkovsky’s mesmerizing piece of science fiction has been a part of the Criterion Collection for some time but it’s been chosen to get the upgrade to the Blu-ray department of the legendary line of releases and so the standard DVD, which was the only version we could get our hands on, was given a new treatment as well.

Blu-Ray Rating: 4.5/5.0

It’s hard to describe “Solaris” accurately. It’s such an unusual movie in that it’s a piece from a genre in which we’ve become accustomed to things like space creatures, but it...