Tarkovsky's Rhythm

I think that Tarkovsky’s discussion of time, rhythm and editing is really invaluable especially for filmmakers and artists who have ever attempted to edit or shape something into a final work of art. “Editing has to do with stretches of time, and the degree of intensity with which these exist, as recorded by the camera; not with abstract symbols… but with the diversity of life perceived” (Tarkovsky 119).  His emphasis on the intensity of time is something he clearly perfected in his own films. The eerie feeling that the temporality in Solaris instills (as Erin said the‘on the edge of your seatness’) works to not only alter our perception but to resituate our notion of reality. When I re-watched the film recently I became more aware of the effect the rhythm had on my perception and the organization of the imagery.  Little nuances of sound also work to grab your attention and pull you in further to Tarkovsky’s world. For instance during the deposition scene we watched in class there is an intermittent beeping sound as the pilot gives his deposition which heightens the intensity of the man’s nervous testimony. A moment later, the clinking of a glass almost completely unravels him.  Erin has often said that perception “is a matter of foregrounding and back grounding” and I think that Solaris is a perfect example of a film where our level of total perception (the plane of imminence) is constantly being tested. Tarkovsky’s subtle methods work to shape a vivid and complete feeling of wholeness which is bound together and continuously reformulating by rhythm itself.