Wow! Such a good movie.

Overrated

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

I can see why many people compare between Tarkovsky's Solaris and Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. Despite both films have completely different themes, It's so clear that Tarkovsky was inspired by 2001 while making Solaris. But the influences have nothing with neither the themes nor the messages and the philosophy of the movie. Tarkovsky influenced by the style and the technical aspect of 2001: A Space Odyssey; the tone. some of the camera shots, the way of using the imagery (in some cases), and even the production design. With that said, I don't think there should be any comparison between the two films.To be honest, I hate 2001, because I think it tells its relies so heavily on its message that there's almost no story to tell. It keeps repeating its messages, that we have already recognized from the get-go, throughout its running time. Adding insult to injury, it tries to be riveting by showing how wonderful the camera work is,how mesmerizing the cinematography is, how fascinating the production design is, how masterful the editing is, etc. While all these technical points made this movie the most beautiful movie I've ever seen, instead of relying on the technical aspect, I think it should have engaged us with the use of narrative elements, such as a dramatic plot, well-wrought and fleshed-out characters, or in a worst-case scenario, a mysterious event or even character. Fortunately, I think Solaris is way better than 2001. It has a fair share of metaphors, and also has fully-developed characters, a coherent plot, and powerful messages. The result is a movie that has a very comprehensive and engaging story that tugs at your heartstrings. Needless to say, the acting is great, the direction is masterful, and the cinematography and the production design are nothing but art! It's just the slow-pacing that sometimes I felt it wasn't necessary. Specially, before the climax as this should exactly be the time when I should be entirely focused, but I found that I get a little bored.Some may find the messages are presented in a direct way and somehow in your face, but that was completely intended. It's the first Tarkovsky film I watch, but it's obvious that presenting the message in the dialogue is kinda his trademark. The characters don't reveal the message to put an end to the story. instead, they keep involving the viewers with the messages they discover along the movie. Can't wait to watch The Mirror and Stalker!(9/10)

This film is reminiscent of the old Star Trek if the captain was a bit melancholic and targetted by alien intelligence. The theme of the film is as if the planet's intelligence reaches the men on the station to keep them there. It uses love, the rematerialization of loved ones to entrap finally our hero. It's a B movie for us but was an A movie at the time for the Russian empire. Some pretty good effects for the time, looking quite cheap by today's standards. The story moves at snail pace possibly to keep us guessing and show us special effects.

A lovely A Space Odyssey-esque film. Artsy and filled with quiet, comtemplative scenes. It's interesting how the film explored human personality and extraterrestrial communication through the ocean's probing of the scientists' mind and trying to understand them using "guests". The philosophical ramblings seemed out-of-place sometimes. Good cinematography too, there's a bunch of pretty shots and cool visuals. Solaris got me into Tarkovsky's other works.

This is more than a Sci Fi film. It is intelligent, provocative, and extremely well directed. It involves a planet, Solaris, which is a puzzle to astronomers. Astronauts have been there and one, in particular, has been affected by the planet. Of course, he is initially thought to be suffering from some mental imbalance and hallucinations. But as explorations go on, there seems to be something about the oceans on the planet. They seem to be sentient. While this is an incredibly long film, it is a joy to watch. I believe that this is a film that requires a second look, especially if you think you got it. Of course, it's in Russian, and that makes certain demands on English speaking viewers, but many of the events are visual, with fairly long, almost surreal moments. I put this near the top of all the films I have ever seen.