Solaris - Past & Present

This week's video essay is a look into how Solaris views the past and the present. What makes us who we are, and what is love?

Special thanks to Christian for Voice Over post processing, check out his channel here:

[Ssalamanderr]

The ending of Solaris is one of the most haunting scenes I've watched in a movie. Thanks for the video!

[jamshydfararooy]

I found this interpretation of the movie very interesting. In Stanilav Lem's book Solaris, there is another major theme: how man confronts the unknown. He is frightened by it, tries to understand it, destroy it, etc. An early scene in the movie is a reference to this idea where the child is frightened when he sees a horse for the first time...

[esais]

1:52, She is not his mother.. She is his aunt... his mother only appears as a young beautiful woman in his memories and I think in a photograph

[SpacemonkeyDurden]

Interesting, I always took the ending as kris doing a full 180, finally embracing his past and this fantasy world he was allowed to create on Solaris, as a way to run away from his problems on earth permanently. Either way, profound film. One of the best.

[strangehausproductions]

I think its unfair to say that the Guests are by no definition human because the film also seems to bring up the question of what makes us human. Hari may not be "real" like we would think and may not have her memories but she clearly loves and can feel pain and sadness. The film presents the question: what is a soul and does Hari have one? Great vid as always & keep up the good work!

[mxnfrfy]

Last scene is "the return of the prodigal son". Like all of Tarkovsky films, Sloaris is about spirituality. Solaris is the ocean of souls.

[mojofo]

BEST DAY EVER! Thank you so much for a Solaris essay! Maybe a Stalker one in the near future!

[gentlerhino]

This is good. Well thought through explanation and, of course, by far not a complete one. I watched Solaris first time in my childhood and was fascinated by it. Didn't understand much though. A lot deeper understanding came after watching it 25 years later with my son. I wonder what else I will discover when I get my grandchildren...

[twistedtxb]

Hey I just stumbled on your channel, and wanted to tell you that your essays are by far the best movie interpretations on YouTube. I can't stop watching the backlog and can't wait for your new videos. Thanks for making these!!

[jamshydfararooy]

The scientists discuss how to react to the planet; they nuke it, they try to understand its laws (the planet produces depictions of complicated mathematical formulae). There's also a scene before the mission (conference) where a number of interpretations and reactions are mooted. How paintings provide a fuller version of reality is also related to the theory of understanding.

[Wagiblues]

nearly all movies from A.Tarkowsky are great Art - even his first two short movies at university got to the heart.

[sigilemarra]

An ancient Celtic tale called "The Ocean of Lir" Claims that all life is configurated by a huge ocean.

[RSEFX]

Possibly one of the most intriguing "reflections" is the one that occurs in the mirrored surface of the station's corridor after Hari (as in Hari Krishna, btw), "dies" from drinking liquid oxygen (or nitrogen?----sorry momentary memory lapse) and the camera finds her distorted facial features almost "floating" in mid-air off of the metal. I can't help but think of the proverbial "ghost in the machine", if, indeed, one can call the inner life a ghost at all. It is a perfectly haunting image, ripe with possibilities, as well as simply a wonderful cinematic moment.

[cinemaspire]

Ah finally, Jack branching out into Tarkovsky territory :D

[fllicksick]

This is the most similar interpretation to my own. I was very confused about the painting and levitation scene when I saw it so thank you for clearing it up for me

[Katya_Lastochka]

I love hearing everyone's different analysis of the movie, especially about Kris trying to run from the past. One of the movies themes is that our memories create who we are, so running away from the creates a bit of an identity crisis.

[kobathedread]

Wow. Fantastic work on offering such a new perspective on Solaris. There was so much I hadn't considered despite having watched in numerous times. I daresay, it is time for me to revisit Solaris though I may well end up stuck there like Kris Kelvin, though hopefully your video will act as a guide to make sure I return safely.

[bev]

Awesome choice and awesome analysis, as usual Jack. So glad to see your subscriber numbers continue to rise slowly but surely.

[MattDraper]

Another great video! Keep up the awesome work.

[ulli]

1:53 The woman that appears in the beginning of the movie is Chris's aunt, not his mother. His father says "Your aunt is coming now" when she is about to walk in and also later in the movie we see that  Chris's mother was actually blonde.