Andrei Rublev

BFI Film Classics

by Robert C. Bird

Andrei Tarkovsky (1932-1986) was one of the great poets of world cinema. A fiercely independent artist, Tarkovsky crafted poignantly beautiful films that have proven inscrutable and been bitterly disputed. These qualities are present in abundance in Andrei Rublev (1966), Tarkovsky's first fully mature film. Ostensibly a biographical study of Russia's most famous medieval icon-painter, Andrei Rublev is both lyrical and epic, starkly naturalistic and allegorical, authentically historical and urgently topical. While much remains mysterious in Andrei Rublev, critics have recently begun to reappraise it as a groundbreaking film that undermines comfortable notions of life and spirituality. Robert Bird's multifaceted account of Andrei Rublev extends this reevaluation of Tarkovsky's radical aesthetic by establishing the film's historical context and presenting a substantially new reading of key scenes. Bird definitively establishes the film's tortured textual history, which has resulted in two vastly different versions. He relates the film to traditions in Russian art and intellectual history, but finally his analysis focuses on Andrei Rublev as a visual and narrative artwork that treats profound existential questions by challenging conventional notions of representation and vision.

Genres: Film, Nonfiction, Russia, Essays

87 pages, Paperback

First published December 20, 2004

Reviews

[Patrick McCoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a follow up to watching Andrei Tarkovsky's classic Andrei Rublev, I decided to read Robert Bird's BFI: Andrei Rublev (2004). It was another well-researched edition in the series providing much insight into the seminal film. In fact, the Criterion Bluray DVD includes an interview with Bird as well. The book is divided into four parts: 1. From Rublev to 'Rublev', 2. The Via Crucis of 'Andrei Rublev', 3. The Shape of the Story, 4. The Elevating Gaze. In Chapter 3, Bird discusses the prologue, seven episodes, and epilogue that make up the structure of the film. It is another stand out edition in the BFI Film Classics series.

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

This slim volume (only 80 pages of main text, after which notes and bibliography) on Andrei Tarkovsky’s masterpiece Andrei Rublev is part of a British Film Institute series examining classic films. Robert Bird, a noted scholar on Andrei Rublev (responsible for extras on the Criterion Criterion’s recent Blu-ray release of the film) briefly discusses a number of issues surrounding the film.

Bird starts with the general Soviet social context in which the Soviet regime encouraged respect for the 15th-century Orthodox Christian iconographer Rublev as as a great Russian artist, though viewing him as a overtly religious thinker was still discouraged. He then moves on to the writing of the initial screenplay by Tarkovsky and Andrei Konchalovsky, and the film’s long gestation and shooting.

Once the film was shot, Tarkovsky had more material than could reasonably be shown, and there began a long struggle to see it released in Soviet cinemas. This led to cuts being made to the film, and Bird discusses the different versions available. Sometimes these cuts (as well as the use of shooting locations hundreds of miles away from one another) led to inconsistencies, but Bird interestingly shows how Tarkovsky’s overall aesthetic papers over any gaps and creates a work of art that is ultimately coherent.

This is enough detail here that cannot be found in e.g. the Criterion Collection extras, so I can recommend this book for fans of Andrei Rublev. The downside is that Bird was clearly struggling against the page limitations set by this British Film Institute series, and we could have got an even more detailed monograph on Tarkovsky’s masterpiece.

[Kirk Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was growing up, a scifi/fantasy magazine came out called Omni. It was put out by the publisher of Penthouse and his future wife. Besides the wild pictures, I mainly remember the glossy feel of the pages. The pages of this book remind me of that magazine.

This is a small book, suitable for a tiny house, and you had best put it in a memorable place on your bookshelves or you will never find it again. But for all that there's a fair amount in here, from a short history of the time, to an insightful synopsis of the film, to a meditation of sorts on its approach. It even has a fair number of photo stills in useful places in the text. Some great quotes from Tarkovsky enliven the author's more dry, but passable, style.

I can't say I always agreed with the author's ideas, but I was always interested. And the last pages of the book I found quite moving. I placed it on my shelf with fondness.

[R · Rating 4 out of 5]

loved watching this just nodding blindly and understanding 15% of what was being presented to me so cant wait to now rewatch and officially understand, lets say, 45%

[Timur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very useful guide to Rublev

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Russian literature and film specialist Robert Bird has written one of the better entries in BFI Film Classics series, offering insightful analysis and valuable production history of Soviet director Andrei Tarkovsky's seminal second feature, Ni>Andrei Rublev (1966). Covering the many different versions of the movie, as well as the cultural and historical context of its making, Bird takes us on a journey through the simultaneously labyrinthine and simple underpinnings of the narrative. It's a valuable and welcome addition to the collection of Tarkovsky scholarship. At times a little too dense in his explication of the cinematic text, Bird still proves himself a mostly engaging and capable guide through the mind of the late, great Russian poet of the screen.