Nostalgia - 1983

Andrei Tarkovsky doesn't do fast paced, or clearly understandable plots or story. Instead his films are meditations, poetic both narrative and in his visually arresting images. Time seems to be a preoccupation in all of his films, and in Nostalgia it is ever present, from the slow, drawn out pace, to the memories of protagonist Gorchakov, a Russian poet travelling through Italy researching the life of a composer (Sosnovsky). Whilst there Gorchakov befriends a local madman in a Tuscan village - who similarly feels a sense of displacement and longing for the past. The madmen tells Gorchakov that he wishes to walk across a sulphurous pool with a lit candle and if he achieves it he will save the world.

As with other Tarkovsky films there is a strong sense of the passage of time, and regular motifs of water and fire as well as memories permeate Tarkovsky's images - enhancing the feeling of poeticism which seems to be a stylistic preoccupation for the Russian filmmaker. By the films conclusion, a repeat of the opening sequence but shot from a different perspective reveals and seems to tie together a lot of the themes the film and Tarkovsky are pre-occupied

The film is also interesting as it is the first film made outside of Russia, and is cowritten by Tonino Guerra who was a lifelong contributor of Michelangelo Antonioni. It was shot by Guiseppe Lanci and stars Oleg Yankovsky, Erland Josephson, Domiziana Giordano

Dune - 1984

I first saw David Lynch's Dune a few years ago. I knew of the source material, the reputation Frank Herbert's tome had, but knew little of the story. And so watching film was not only a little confusing, but also contained a mystical attraction - which I know put down to Lynch's aura and my lack of knowledge of Dune. Now, having having read (one of the most incredible books of my life) Icame to the film with a different perspective. Firstly Lynch should be commended for his screenplay and effectively condensing enough material to make a trilogy into 2 hours worth of cinema. He should also be commended for creating such a visually vibrant and unique universe. Yet the film is so incomprehensible if you are not completely familiar with the source text; there is also a rather rushed character arc for Paul (The always watchable Kyle MacLachlan), and a lot of the major character developments within the book are breezed over, and come not through action by through some intuitive voiceover. Lynch can't really be criticized for this. He is tackling a beast of a story, and has managed to do so admirably.

The film is also helped out by a very watchable cast, grappling with dialogue that even a great Shakespearean actor such as Patrick Stewart struggles with. The action set pieces are also exhilarating, especially the final duel between MacLachlan and Sting. But ultimately the film lacks the weight of the book or any number of classic science fiction films, and also contains some fairly shoddy and now dated visual effects.

With word of the new remake, adaptation of Dune, and the failed attempt of Jodorowsky's Dune, the myth and life of Dune continues unabated, and a new director must now tackle one of the most difficult science fiction books. What Lynch gave us was a unique interpretation of the book, which remained as faithful as possible, and also showcased one of American cinemas most original and visually challenging voices but the film is evidently the weakest Lynch has made and is now more a curio than a classic.