About "Solaris", I really wish I can understand Andrei Tarkovsky's Russian sense of aesthetic. His strong color background comparing to the enormous black space station window. Those powerful shots are all examples of humans' atrocious nature of endlessly expanding earth.
"Solaris" is a place where unknown exists. Andrei used his unique videotape storytelling to explain what happened during the exploration of "Solaris". Further on, "Kris" burnt his belongings on earth and that symbolizes his life on earth has ended. With the same ambitions like all other human being, he went to the space station to solve the misery of those messages that were sent from the station that don't make any sense. But at the same time, "Kris" is also an important character throughout the film that leads us on this trip of discovering the true nature of mankind. When the disillusioned scientist "Snaut" said that we don't want other worlds, we want a mirror. That amplified Andrei's purpose of describing human ambition.And this desire to see what we want to see is illustrated to a lesser degree by "Kris's love for "Hari". "Hari" is the medium that created by the ocean of "Solaris", she began as a reflection of "Kris's memory" , she appears in a way how "Kris" wants her to be but never was how she is supposed to be. The film also questions us about our place as a species and the limitation we have in the universe, after the communication between us and this oceanic planet appeared to be futile, we soon realized our mere existence in the space and the abysmal limitation it possesses upon us. Of course, nowadays with the rapid development of our technology, all of our assumptions towards that we have limitless opportunities in the future is realistic. But subsequently, what's our ultimate place in the universe if we are where we are right now? Is earth bad? The film also begins with nature, the only entity that is so primal and fundamental to begin with. The flowing of the green weeds in the river from my perspective symbolizes that are all human just the same like each other or is it just the flow of "water" which means the flow of time and space eventually shape us into the same dimension?
Lastly, through "Kris" and "Hari's relationship, it also made me wonder do we like our partner just the way they are or just the way of how we perceive them? "Hari" is indeed an accumulation of memory that lives in "Kris's mind, but "Kris" first thought about sending her away because of sorrow and confusion, but later on he accepted with a warm embrace. In the end, "Hari" still finds it hard to reveal her true self. In this case, I think this is no doubt a powerful "call of action" of how we should accept others we love for who they are and truly love someone we care deeply with our true heart.
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