Pauline Kael once said that "movies took their impetus not from the desiccated, imitation European high culture, but from the peep show, the Wild West show, the music hall, the comic strip - from what was coarse and common." Andrei Tarkovsky, in his relatively short career, dismissed cinema's original intent, it's coarse nature that Pauline Kael referred to, and used cinema as a way to move the viewer to meditate on his or her spirituality. THE SACRIFICE, Andrei Tarkovsky's final film, is yet another film of Tarkovsky's brilliant catalogue, which emphasizes the importance of faith and spiritual reflection.
THE SACRIFICE is a hard film for some to figure out. Personally, there is not one film playing in the nearest theater from which I write this review that approaches the relevance that this film conveys. The movie is about a man with a lucrative career that takes some time off with some family and friends to an isolated location. He appears to be pretty well off until he gets message that war is imminent. He prays to God, in one of the most intense moments in film, and promises that if God ends the war then he will disown his family, burn his house down, and stay silent for the rest of his life. The war ends.... That's as far as I'm going to go because I want you to have the opportunity to see a film that rises above cinema. The film, however, does not reveal if God responds to the prayer. Whether he does or not is not what THE SACRIFICE is about. It's about the actions that we perform in order to be closer to God, and some people respond more intensely than others.
Great movies about spirituality are all but gone from today's cinema. Most come off as either to corny, preachy, etc ... Unlike those ridiculous exercises, THE SACRIFICE is a smart film. It's beautifully crafted, the acting is terrific, and the direction is top notch. It is a film that has moved me to reflect on my own spirituality as well, and I can truly tell you that few movies have done that to me. I really appreciate THE SACRIFICE; it is a film that has produced an important effect in my life. Now how many movies can do that?
THE SACRIFICE is a hard film for some to figure out. Personally, there is not one film playing in the nearest theater from which I write this review that approaches the relevance that this film conveys. The movie is about a man with a lucrative career that takes some time off with some family and friends to an isolated location. He appears to be pretty well off until he gets message that war is imminent. He prays to God, in one of the most intense moments in film, and promises that if God ends the war then he will disown his family, burn his house down, and stay silent for the rest of his life. The war ends.... That's as far as I'm going to go because I want you to have the opportunity to see a film that rises above cinema. The film, however, does not reveal if God responds to the prayer. Whether he does or not is not what THE SACRIFICE is about. It's about the actions that we perform in order to be closer to God, and some people respond more intensely than others.
Great movies about spirituality are all but gone from today's cinema. Most come off as either to corny, preachy, etc ... Unlike those ridiculous exercises, THE SACRIFICE is a smart film. It's beautifully crafted, the acting is terrific, and the direction is top notch. It is a film that has moved me to reflect on my own spirituality as well, and I can truly tell you that few movies have done that to me. I really appreciate THE SACRIFICE; it is a film that has produced an important effect in my life. Now how many movies can do that?