Film Review: Ivan's Childhood
Ivan Childhood (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1962)
In Russian, with English subtitles
An orphan boy loses both his family and his innocence as war ravages his country and his childhood. "I'm not afraid," he says as he (now) works as spy, and under the care of Russian officers. The film easily evokes emotions as one should feel when confronted with the horrors of war. This film, Tarkovsky's first, seemed like a prelude to what would he be making in the coming years. The director knows the language of cinema very well. A showcase of blasting and exchange of fire, like in most modern films on war, could have diluted the visual poetry of Ivan's Childhood. It's good thing Tarkovsky did not dwell on such cheap tricks. The result: every scene, every picture, the ones which would later be called Tarkovskian, speaks a thousand words.
In Russian, with English subtitles
An orphan boy loses both his family and his innocence as war ravages his country and his childhood. "I'm not afraid," he says as he (now) works as spy, and under the care of Russian officers. The film easily evokes emotions as one should feel when confronted with the horrors of war. This film, Tarkovsky's first, seemed like a prelude to what would he be making in the coming years. The director knows the language of cinema very well. A showcase of blasting and exchange of fire, like in most modern films on war, could have diluted the visual poetry of Ivan's Childhood. It's good thing Tarkovsky did not dwell on such cheap tricks. The result: every scene, every picture, the ones which would later be called Tarkovskian, speaks a thousand words.
Rating: 4.0/4.0
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