That movie poster to the right is not the poster for The Poseidon Adventure. It is somehow the poster for Russian Ark, which is funny, because I don’t remember a giant tidal wave of fire and blood washing everyone away. This film solidified yesterday’s theme as “what happens to you just right after you die.” The prediction that Sokurov makes is definitely more beautiful and creative than Kore-eda’s dire outlook on filmmaking and VHS loops, but the two naturally have a lot in common. Basically, there is a tendency for us to believe that we will wade through our respective histories for a while when we die, and then we will dive into the whitewash of eternity.
The fact that this was done in one continuous shot is definitely impressive, and it served a very important purpose that I didn’t expect, in that when i think back to the film and pinpoint who the protagonist is, I identify it as me. It was me walking through the endless halls and looking at the paintings and asking the questions. I also don’t identify what I saw as a document of reality, it was definitely a dream that I had. Probably more accurately than any other film that has attempted it, this film conveyed the experience of dreaming, even if what took place in the film wasn’t supposed to be a dream. If Sokurov ever needs to make a film one day that calls for an authentic-feeling dream state, he has his method.
I feel confident that I would have benefitted from a broader knowledge of Russian history. I don’t think that that is something which should have been avoided, though. I get the impression that Sokurov made the best film that he could have made given his intensions. Nothing can be improved. The film would not have been better if it dumbed itself down for those unknowledgeable about Russian history. It is more impressive and effective in retrospect for me, though, because of this failure of mine to comprehend what the characters were often referencing, which led to an often boring viewing experience for me. But I can’t say I didn’t expect this, nor that I didn’t enjoy the film more than I expected to.