The Mirror
1975 ‘Зеркало’ Directed by Андрей Тарковский
Synopsis
A man in his forties is going to die and remembers his past. His childhood, his mother, the war, personal moments but things that also tell the story of all the Russian nation.
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When I first saw Tarkovsky's much critically acclaimed, Mirror, I was living alone in the middle of Valencia, isolated, and at times struggling to cope with the pressures of adapting to a new, somewhat alien surrounding. Mirror became my coping strategy; watching it would both elevate me from personal conflictions and day-to-day problems. Most importantly perhaps, it enabled a personal evaluation through the idea that despite being an incredibly intricate and intimate outing, Tarkovsky forces the viewer to find themselves as well. In that respect, the title is extremely apt from a joint view.
The beauty and wonder that comes from a Tarkovsky film is the way in which he manages to inflict such a sense of poignancy in the…
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I decided to watch "The Mirror" because I read that so many people could not understand it and so said it was awful. This is just the kind of thing that pushes me to watch a film.
Indeed The Mirror is hard to understand. It's easy to feel, though. For those who are interested in real Cinema, the movie locks you into its meaningful images, makes you think what they mean to the movie - the fire in the barn, the mother in the shower, the dripping milk - and then lead you to your own feelings. This is an autobiographical picture. Tarkovsky himself told that this was his memories. Obviously, they aren't only Tarkovsky's memories, they are paths to…
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The Mirror is a film you finish and immediately think ''I need to re-watch that.''
Dare i say, the most visually beautiful Tarkovsky film? The visuals are incredibly enticing in this, especially all pre-war sequences centered around the barn. It has a surreal, eerie, nightmarish feel to it - particularly the scene the strange woman's disappearance. The diegetic sound only adds to the alluring atmosphere in this, specifically the rain which is used throughout. I would go as far as to interpret the events, or most of the events, as a nightmare. It plays like one and makes you feel the same nervous dread throughout. A stream of nightmarish conscious; and everyone wishes their nightmares looked this good.
The cheek… -
If I had not seen Terrence Mallick's The Tree of Life prior to this I may have been more blown away. Their premise is similar, a man in his 40's reflects upon his childhood. We see his relationship with his mother, his memory of the war and moments from his childhood all shown in a dream-like state. If your life does flash before your eyes in your dying moments, this is how I'd imagine it would play out.
It's hard to follow and comprehend but I honestly don't think you're supposed to, you're supposed to just take this journey through Tarkovsky's mind, seeing things the way he does. There is a mix of realism and surrealism in here, the more…
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Tarkovsky amazed me again with a film that deviates from his already solid and legendary film-making style.
This films is far more surreal at times than some of his other films and strongly reminded me of some of Imgar Bergman's films at times. Though some may find the structure polarizing, I managed to follow the story-line of the film quite well. It revolved around an army man, his ex-wife, and their son, often time having the one actress portray both his ex-wife and mother.
The symbolism in the films is sublime and evokes some of Tarkovsky's strongest imagery ever. The characters in this films also feel stronger than his other films, giving us a stark look at the modern female working class woman in Russia.
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Abandoning conventional narrative and technique, Tarkovsky attempts the very difficult task of making this film as a series of thoughts and memories, almost a daydream if you will, which flashes between different time periods and story threads with little sense of structure.
Describing the plot of the film is borderline impossible. It flutters between 1935, the 1940s, and the 1960s, and consists of the broken dreams and memories of a dying man.
Tarkovsky's film is incredibly personal and hard to understand, but it rewards repeat viewings and throws up many interesting ideas. It is a meditative film above all else, not expecting understanding on the part of the viewer, but instead encouraging them to step into the recollections of another and experience that person's thoughts and memories, taking from them what they will.
The Mirror is a brilliant film, unconventional and deep to be sure, but somehow captivating in spite of its difficult nature.
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One of the most breathtaking cinematic experiences I have ever had. This film puts you in a trance and doesn`t snap you out of it until the end. I can tell this film requires more than one viewing and I am looking forward to re-watching. It has been a few days since my first viewing and I am still trying to wrap my mind around it. Tarkovsky is truly a master of his craft.
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I'm still not a Tarkovsky convert, although I feel like that's more MY problem than anything having to do with his movies. This was beautiful and poetic and in many ways a representation of what real, great Cinema can do. This should have been my introduction to Tarkovsky, not Solaris. Still, it lost me at points with lack of structure and, at times, slow pacing, which makes me hesitant to give it the full 5-start treatment. But yes, I do objectively recognize how downright incredible this movie is. I hope that with repeat viewings (a necessity, it seems, in this case) and further exploration of his filmography (maybe Stalker next?), I'll come around. An experience, for sure.
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this was my introduction to Tarkovsky, hooked ever since
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Tarkovsky amazed me again with a film that deviates from his already solid and legendary film-making style.
This films is far more surreal at times than some of his other films and strongly reminded me of some of Imgar Bergman's films at times. Though some may find the structure polarizing, I managed to follow the story-line of the film quite well. It revolved around an army man, his ex-wife, and their son, often time having the one actress portray both his ex-wife and mother.
The symbolism in the films is sublime and evokes some of Tarkovsky's strongest imagery ever. The characters in this films also feel stronger than his other films, giving us a stark look at the modern female working class woman in Russia.
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Abandoning conventional narrative and technique, Tarkovsky attempts the very difficult task of making this film as a series of thoughts and memories, almost a daydream if you will, which flashes between different time periods and story threads with little sense of structure.
Describing the plot of the film is borderline impossible. It flutters between 1935, the 1940s, and the 1960s, and consists of the broken dreams and memories of a dying man.
Tarkovsky's film is incredibly personal and hard to understand, but it rewards repeat viewings and throws up many interesting ideas. It is a meditative film above all else, not expecting understanding on the part of the viewer, but instead encouraging them to step into the recollections of another and experience that person's thoughts and memories, taking from them what they will.
The Mirror is a brilliant film, unconventional and deep to be sure, but somehow captivating in spite of its difficult nature.
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La película inicia con la cura de un tartamudo. Blanco y negro. Ahora puede empezar a hablar.
El diálogo es escaso. La historia salta de un lado a otro. La imagen, sin necesidad de una declamación que trate de hilar todo, nos deja un testigo que funciona justo como la memoria. Y sabemos que hay más. Y se nos dice.
Tarkovsky, en mi opinión el más grande de todos, no voltea la cámara hacia él para hacer un film personal. Su vida, su poesía, queda plasmada en cada fotograma. El espejo no refleja nuestro rostro, no hay modo de hacer relación a primera vista.
Al reconocernos en el espejo, desaparece un elemento que nos permite no saltar desconcertados: la mirada como propiedad ajena. La película nos mira al mismo tiempo de mostrarse. Aparece una vida.
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I clearly was not one of those people that understood the magnitude of this film. There are some nice shots, but even at an hour and forty minutes, this film is one of the slowest films I've ever watched. Didn't understand it at all. I'm giving this 1.5 due to all the work the camera operator had to do. But yeah, not for me.
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An inscrutable visual poem that even with ten years more experience watching and decoding meanings in film, I am no closer to cracking, and to be honest, I don't much care to understand. I am not a Tarkovsky fan, however I can entirely appreciate the haunting beauty of The Mirror on a very superficial level, and just assume that for other people all of these moments mean something profoundly. On rewatch can see just how much Lars Von Trier was paying homage to this film with the look of Anti-Christ.
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Rating: 8/10
Andrei Tarkovsky’s THE MIRROR [1975]; By far one of Tarkovsky’s most artistically bold and daring films. At the core of Tarkovsky’s 1975 film THE MIRROR tells the story of a middle age man upon his deathbed reflecting upon his life. Through memories, dreams, the closing scenes set in the “present’ and even a touch of the man’s fantasies we are told about the course of the man’s life.THOUGHTS; Splicing passages of poetry of the Poet Arseny Tarkovsky (the father of Andrei) with awe inspiring imagery and the lack of a traditional narrative makes THE MIRROR one of Tarkovsky’s most challenging films. With that been said the challenging aspect of this film there is a lot to absorb…