§ Andrei Tarkovsky
* Elements of Cinema
ROBERT BIRD‘A major contribution to the literature on the filmmaker. Robert
Bird is thoroughly familiar with Russian sources unavailable to
English readers and he has a remarkable sensitivity to the nuances
of cinematic construction. His writing is lucid and consistently
illuminates Tarkovksy’s central preoccupation ~ “the tragic failure
conflict with its natural conditions”.’
of spirituality .
—P. Adams Sitney, Professor of Visual Arts, Princeton University, and author
of Visionary Film: The American Avant-Garde 1943-2000
A revered filmmaker, Andrei Tarkovsky is secure in the long and illus-
trious line of Russian masters in arts and letters. Linking cinematic
technique to broader questions of meaning and interpretation, Robert
Bird offers a wholly original investigation into the aesthetic principles
of Tarkovsky’s filmmaking, While providing a comprehensive analysis
of his work in all media, including radio, theatre and opera, Bird argues
that Tarkovsky was most at home in the cinema. Accordingly, the
author dwells chiefly on Tarkovsky’s major films: lean’ Childhood,
Andrei Rublev, Solaris, Mirror, Stalker, Nostalghia and Sacrifice. With
its wealth of film stills and photographs, this book is a key text for all
admirers of Tarkovsky and European cinema.
Robert Bird is Associate Professor in the Department of Slavic Languages
and Literatures at the University of Chicago, and the author of Andrei
Rublev (2005), a monograph on Tarkovsky’s film of that name.
With 106 illustrations, 32 in colour
Cover image: Lars-Olof Lothwa
Ynostalghia.com/stt
ISBN 978-1-86189-342-0
9 781861 893420 >
REAKTION BOOKS LT
www.reaktionbooks.co.ukAndrei Tarkovsky