Review of Russian Ark (2002) by Josh G — 29 May 2008
To preface this review, let me say that I did not finish this movie.
The question one is bound to ask after a proclamation like that is, "How can you judge the movie fairly if you haven't even seen it all?" Call me simple-minded if you must, but I can't imagine there was much more to see.
The main character/camera follows a man who is essentially a tour guide through a museum of Russian history. We're also maybe going back and forth through time, but if that's so it is hard to tell. The tour guide stops occasionally to speak nonsense lines at someone else in the room, none of it making any sense.
Is there a reason anybody decides to watch an hour and thirty-six minutes of this pointlessness? No, the movie is not in 3-D. It's not in smell-o-vision.
What gets people to watch this movie is the fact that the entire film -- all ninety-six minutes of it -- have been done in one take. There is allegedly a ball-room dance scene late in the film. There is a scene with an orchestra near the beginning. There are a few stairway scenes where the tour guide looks back to talk to the camera. "If he stumbles while looking back," I thought to myself, "they'll have to start the whole movie over.".
I guess that's kind of cool? Really, that's ALL the movie has going for it. So, you know, I respect the fact that they did this and it sounds like it was probably a pretty difficult endeavor.
But aside from a kitschy, well-isn't-that-interesting vibe, what else does Russian Ark have?
This review of Russian Ark (2002) was written by Josh G on 29 May 2008.
Russian Ark has generally received very positive reviews.
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