Finally finished this film after stopping two-thirds of the way through a couple of months ago. Like revisiting an unfinished book, it took a moment to get back into its tone and recall the narrative, only for it to end soon after.
As a camera person, I was a sucker for the cinematography and the main character’s photographic practice. It was also cool to see period Production Design recreating early examples of Scandinavian design, architecture, and clothing—styles people now consume…
Tarkovsky's homesickness is infectious. My recent dreams of home came to mind. In those dreams, home, the city, is so uncanny. I'm walking around in a blissed out state, but as dreams go, no one emotion lasts. The tone subsides and the dream's narrative takes a darker turn. It's an emotional roller coaster. So that's what I see in Nostalgia: the instability in Tarkovsky's life. He's hurting and we sense that in real time. The length of these scenes are punishing. That candle lighting scene in the empty sulfur baths! This is endurance cinema and makes for the most engaging film watching experience.
Nostalgic for the days we all made this! Filming was impulsive. You’d call me with a new scene to shoot that day. Malabar Battery, Marrickville Rd, La Perouse Point. You’d drive me all over, showing me a new side to the city I’d grown up in. At the time, I had no idea what story was emerging, how it’d all piece together. And then you sent me cut. And showed me another at our place in Seattle. And then a…
