Solaris (1972)

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Year:	1972
Country of origin:	Russia
Director:	Andrei Tarkovsky
Genre:	Isolation, love, sanity
Starring:	Donatas Banionis, Natalya Bondarchuk, Jüri Järvet
Rating:	5/5
IMDB link:	http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069293/
Tagline:	No tagline
Favourite line:	N/A - Subtitled

Andrei Tarkovsky's original Solaris is a brooding, melancholic affair, beautifully shot, that is as absorbing as it is long.

The plot:
A psychologist, Kris Kelvin, is sent to a space station orbiting the mysterious ocean planet Solaris, after reports of strange goings on aboard reach mission control, not to mention the disappearance and possible murder of one of the scientists aboard.
When Kris reaches the space station, he is greeted with open hostility by the two survivors, and is perplexed by the young woman he keeps seeing fleetingly, though no woman is reportedly aboard. It's not long before his sanity is stretched to breaking point as he is paid visits by his long dead wife, victim of suicide.
Where are the hallucinations coming from, and what is there purpose?
Could it be the planet itself trying to communicate with him?

Hauntingly emotive, this is a slow burner that will drag like a dog's posterior on wet grass for some, but will simply fly by for others.
If action, explosions and laser battles is what you look for in your sci-fi, steer well clear of this, for this is much more austere, a thinking man's science fiction movie, unfit for the dribbling masses.
As Tarkovsky's painful attention to detail allows the narrative to slowly unfold, at an achingly sombre pace, the majesty of the visuals sweeps you along, utterly captivating, utterly riveting, as scene after visually sumptuous scene will leave your mind reeling, convinced that someone must have spiked you with a hallucinogen, for how else to explain the wonders you are witnessing?
At two hours forty five in duration, this is challengingly long, especially bearing in mind that almost nothing happens, but this isn't about plot twists and sleight of hand scripting, this is all about sensory stimulation, and the director achieves his aim, and then some.
As beautifully evocative a movie as you are likely to see, this comes highly recommended.