"Stalker".

And through the lashes, set before,

The dusk and gloomy flame of passion.

F. Tyutchev 

"I Love Your Dear Eyes..."

«Let it fulfill what was conceived. 

Let them believe. 

Let them laugh at their passions. 

Because what they call passion actually is not a spiritual energy, 

but just the friction between the soul and the outside world. 

And most importantly, let them believe in themselves. 

And they will become helpless, as a children. 

Because the weakness is great, when the power is negligible. 

When a person is born, he is weak and flexible. 

When he dies, he is firm and callous. 

When the tree grows, it is soft and supple. 

And when it is dry and hard, it dies. 

Induration and strength are satellites of death. 

Flexibility and weakness express the dew of being. 

Therefore, all that is incrusted will not win.»

Stalker, 1979

“Stalker” is the film, directed by A.Tarkovsky, with the screenplay was written by B. and A. Strugatsky, loosely based on their novel “Roadside Picnic”.

Through all his films, Tarkovsky always used the same technique when it comes to make footage and do the montage.

All his shots are famous for being taken as a one, long, single slip of time.

Only then, the director is adding extra narrative shots inside the original big one.

It was done as a meaning to save up the film reels back in Russia, and then it became a trademark of Tarkovsky.

In pic.50 we can only see the table with some objects standing on it. However, soon they begin shaking and sliding across the surface. And with the add of the sound of the train passing by, we get the image of a house, standing right next to the railway.

Very simple, and nothing excessive.

The travelling from the city into the mysterious Zone shocks the audience with the contrast between them.

The film starts in the sepia color theme, which is nothing new with Tarkovsky.

But when the characters enter the Zone, it’s as if the world comes back to life.

We are surrounded by wild nature that overtook the ruins of the previous civilization.

Everywhere you look is bright color, it’s almost as if you can smell the freshness of the grass and the water in the catacombs.

How it happened? What is this strange place?

The Zone is famous for it’s secret room, where you can find the gold sphere which will grant you your sacred wishes.

But at what coast? And what exactly the person will get?

This is for everyone to find out for themselves.

Again we see the repetition of the same pattern from his previous work.

Only the horse is substituted by the black dog. How did it get there when the Zone is desolated?

The icon and the coins in the water seem ironic. There is a belief I Russia, that in order to visit the same place again, you throw a coin into the fountain or any other source of water.

What did those people think? They threw coins into the Zone, when they came to seek theitr most sacred wishes. What more is there to wish for?

And the icon – Did they pray for the Zone not to harm them? The Zone does not follow the human rules. It has entirely different nature.

And again, Tarkovsky keeps the standard of his choice of the location. The visual power of them is so strong that it stays with you for a long time. Not need to re-watch the film – you already remember the places the characters visit. Only if you wish to hear again their dialogues, thich takes a whole new level comparing to the previous films.

Mostly because it does not have a single interpretation. Each person understands them in his own way.

P.s. Those are parts and quotes from my thesis, concerning only the film "Stalker".

Also some mentioning of his previous works.