Ivan's Childhood is Andrei Tarkovsky's first film and in some people's mind's his first half film, as the movie was apparently started and he took over, adding some dream sequences, a love triangle and his ending. It is in fact, the shortest and easiest to swallow of Tarkovsky's films and gave us inkling into what was to come. In many minds, Tarkovsky peaked with The Mirror (often called Mirror) and in from a visceral standpoint, this is true. While watching Ivan's Childhood I kept thinking of Terrence Malick and how this film's simplicity and power matched that of Badlands and how Andrei Rublev somewhat felt like the epic attempt in The Thin Red Line. Innocence and War (inner and literal). Malick's masterpiece, Tree of Life, with all it's heavy symbolism, has scenes that resemble so many I saw in the Tarkovsky's work, especially the mirror. The parallels are just to numerous to ignore.
Getting back to Ivan's Childhood, it is important to remember that we're dealing with Russian films and they had to be made a certain way. It is also important to note that Tarkovsky refused to cut his films, because they would lose his message. In some minds, he came along at the perfect time. Ivan hinges on the performance of Nikolay Burlyaev, who was 15 at the time and had never acted. Knowing this is a surprise, because it's arguably one of the greatest performances by a child in the history of film. His first few scenes are mesmerizing and the only knock on the film as whole, was my desire for more of his presence. The film jumps between war and dreams of a better time and is done so with such beauty, at times you swear there are glimmers of color within the black and white stock. The use of shadows and light are exquisite and I promise you'll remember this film the next time you gaze at a birch tree. In the end, the film is quite simple and moving and is everything this viewer looks for in a film. It's noted by many as his worst, but I'd argue it might be his second or third best. For a man who made seven films, five of which I've seen and none not brilliant in some way, worst and best are ridiculous descriptions. It's something that must be seen, possibly coupled with The Mirror, to see his growth, both in direction and viewpoint. Like Malick he loves to show innocence being challenged and maybe it's his innocence that most modern day viewers didn't connect with.
Getting back to Ivan's Childhood, it is important to remember that we're dealing with Russian films and they had to be made a certain way. It is also important to note that Tarkovsky refused to cut his films, because they would lose his message. In some minds, he came along at the perfect time. Ivan hinges on the performance of Nikolay Burlyaev, who was 15 at the time and had never acted. Knowing this is a surprise, because it's arguably one of the greatest performances by a child in the history of film. His first few scenes are mesmerizing and the only knock on the film as whole, was my desire for more of his presence. The film jumps between war and dreams of a better time and is done so with such beauty, at times you swear there are glimmers of color within the black and white stock. The use of shadows and light are exquisite and I promise you'll remember this film the next time you gaze at a birch tree. In the end, the film is quite simple and moving and is everything this viewer looks for in a film. It's noted by many as his worst, but I'd argue it might be his second or third best. For a man who made seven films, five of which I've seen and none not brilliant in some way, worst and best are ridiculous descriptions. It's something that must be seen, possibly coupled with The Mirror, to see his growth, both in direction and viewpoint. Like Malick he loves to show innocence being challenged and maybe it's his innocence that most modern day viewers didn't connect with.
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