Review of Nostalgia (1983) by Mitchell W — 06 Feb 2008

Tarkovsky was known as a poet, not a storyteller, and over the course of two hours, he really tests your patience. What little plot remains in the film moves at an excruciating pace, but for better or for worse, it fits the overall aesthetic.

This trance-like meditation centers around a musicologist who experiences nostalgia like a form of mental disintegration, and the slow, deliberate camera movements, misty landscapes and repetitiveness only add to the picture's hallucinatory tone.

The most striking visuals come in the evocative black & white sequences, most likely a combination of flashbacks and Gortchakov's interior fantasies. Difficult and obtuse, it's a tough film to recommend, but there aren't many like it.