Andrei Rublev

Tarkovsky’s monumental second feature is considered by many to be the finest Soviet film of the postwar era. Andrei Rublev presents several imaginary episodes in the life of its title character, a 15th-century Russian Orthodox monk who won renown as an icon painter. Little is known about the historical Rublev; Tarkovsky renders him as a man clinging desperately to his faith in God and art in a world of overwhelming cruelty and barbarism. The allegorical significance of the film was not lost on the commissars — Rublev’s plight could stand for that of any number of modern artists under Soviet rule — and, after stunning Moscow audiences at the end of 1966, the film was promptly banned for five years (on the grounds of “historical inaccuracy”). A heavily-edited version won the International Critics Prize at Cannes in 1969. It screens here in the original, full-length version intended by Tarkovsky. “Its greatness as movie-making immediately evident, Andrei Rublev was also the most historically audacious Soviet production since Eisenstein’s Ivan the Terrible” (J. Hoberman, Village Voice). “Imperative viewing. It is a film of spiritual power and epic grandeur, re-creating fifteenth-century Russia with a vividness unmatched by any historical film I can think of. It may be Tarkovsky’s greatest work” (Philip French). B&W with colour sequence, 35mm, in Russian with English subtitles. 205 mins.

Please note: Double-Bill prices in effect for this film.