Matt Shea
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Morgan Bell
Cibbuano
David O'Connell
Mountain Fog
Russian Ark
November 1st 2007 22:40
Russian Ark is a 2002 film that consists of a single uninterrupted shot through the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg.
""2,000 Actors. 300 Years of Russian History. 33 Rooms at the Hermitage Museum. 3 Live Orchestras. 1 Single Continuous Shot.""
Did you hear me? A single 90 minute shot... of what? Of a tribute to the beauty and majesty of Russian history in the past 300 years.
It's absolutely stunning... some sequences function as a virtual tour of the museum, letting the camera linger on some of the important pieces of art on the walls, but much of it veers off into incredible choreography and beautiful, mesmerizing motion. This is truly an impressive piece of cinema.
Please watch the trailer:
Directed by Alexander Sokurov, Russian Ark is an interesting answer to the wrestle between mise-en-scene and montage... since the movie is unedited in sequence, we're stranded in the realm of mise-en-scene, with the director controlling only the movement of the camera.
There is a narrative voice, but he is as confused and lost as the rest of us, as if he represents the audience, pulled through the Museum forcefully. The narrator, acting as our conscience, if unable to interact with most of the people in the scenes, except for one man, The European, who represents the Marquis de Custine.
It's a difficult movie to describe, but I was overwhelmed by the sheer passion and artistry evident in the production. There's one moment where the camera goes backstage at a stage production, leading us up over the stage to look at the audience and orchestra, a sinful collision between the cinema audience and the theatre audience - it made me take a sharp inhale in relative dumbfoundedness.
The end of Roger Ebert's review captures some of my sentiments:
"I found myself in a reverie of thoughts and images, and sometimes, as my mind drifted to the barbarity of Stalin and the tragic destiny of Russia, the scenes of dancing became poignant and ironic.
It is not simply what Sokurov shows about Russian history, but what he does not show--doesn't need to show, because it shadows all our thoughts of that country. Kauffmann is right that if the film had been composed in the ordinary way out of separate shots, we would question its purpose. But it is not, and the effect of the unbroken flow of images (experimented with in the past by directors like Hitchcock and Max Ophuls) is uncanny. If cinema is sometimes dreamlike, then every edit is an awakening. "Russian Ark" spins a daydream made of centuries."
It is not simply what Sokurov shows about Russian history, but what he does not show--doesn't need to show, because it shadows all our thoughts of that country. Kauffmann is right that if the film had been composed in the ordinary way out of separate shots, we would question its purpose. But it is not, and the effect of the unbroken flow of images (experimented with in the past by directors like Hitchcock and Max Ophuls) is uncanny. If cinema is sometimes dreamlike, then every edit is an awakening. "Russian Ark" spins a daydream made of centuries."
The film seems to spiral through the museum ad nauseum, and you can sense the audience becoming restless (I heard one man snoring!), but, to me, the effect of Russian Ark is that it's like the long-tailed wisps of a dream; fragments of memories, imprinted and left by souls who walked these very walls of the Hermitage hundreds of years ago. Should Sokurov be so arrogant as to script them? He leaves us with slivers of shards of a story, and that, in itself, is enough.
I say: While not enjoyed by everyone, I found Russian Ark to be absolutely magnificent and worthy of the highest praise. It gave me a new admiration for Russian elegance and art.
See it for: Naturally, every reviewers gushes over the ballroom scene, which is unbelievable and almost terrifying. I'd say, also see it for the beautiful women in fabulously sexy dresses... memories of a time that we'll never see again, except on the screen.
* this image is from Kinoeye
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Comment by Luke
Old Movies
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Comment by Cibbuano
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I only know a little about Russian history, so I feel like I missed out, too... there's a lot of clever conversation between the narrator and the European, and many of the people in the film represent famous Russians over the years...
Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
I found myself holding my breath during some of the dexterous camera work, the math involved to overcome the logistics and achieve the shots is staggering.
From a tehnical standpoint the film is a masterpiece, though it didn't engage and dazzle in the same way as Hitchcock's Rope.
Comment by Cibbuano
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yes, Russian ark is a technical wonder, but many people seem to be uninspired by the content. I dunno, I found it dreamlike and compelling...
Comment by Lilla
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I really like the sound of this one... I like long slow camera shots that allow you to sink all the way into the screen as if you are truly there... wonderful!
Unfortunately I couldn't get the trailer-thingy to work again, it says it's no longer available, but I have read enough to have already put this one on the list.
Thank you for the heads up.
Lilla ...
Comment by Cibbuano
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Comment by Morgan Bell
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Comment by Cibbuano
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I'd definitely recommend watching this in a theatre, though... it's really a cinematic experience, especially when the camera plays tricks with the audience, appearing behind and in front of audiences onscreen. Wonderful!