"The Steamroller and the Violin" (Language - Russian) (1961) - Movie Review

If a 43 minute film of Tarkovsky is going to make me impatient, I do not know what else I can talk about this director, who is hailed as the cinematic Beethoven. His work appeal to me only as a dull, unenergetic and irritatingly sedative random somber walk in the dark and never gets through the skull of mine. I had some moments to relinquish on the art and camera work, but did not sum up into an impressive film.

This short feature film was the work he did for his diploma work along with a fellow student, Andrei Konchalavsky, the co-writer. It follows the unusual friendship between a steam roller operator Sergei (Vladimir Zamansky) and a kid named Sasha (Igor Fomchenko) from socially higher class who wanders with his violin. Sergei saves Sasha from the regular bully of his street kids which pulls Sasha towards Sergei. Sergei responds too allowing him a ride in his steam roller. Before that, we see Sasha taking his music class wherein we have an unspoken moment with a little girl. What Tarkovsky is indirectly and secretively saying can only be interpreted by his hardcore fans, not me.

His shots are supposed to be poetic, carrying a weight of art through the visuals than a series of plot points or dramatization. Duly noted and accepted. Does it reflect out here? Couple of shots did that, especially the kaleidoscope reflections of various happenings behind the back ground of Sasha through numerous mirrors. Collage of those images does have those artful punctuations but sadly does not last. We drool through the uninteresting after noon session of hot sun, rain and the sullen evening effects with nothing but couple of dialogues between these new friends.

I have nothing more to add and it has lot to do with the short period of the film. There is not much of significant importance which got captured by my sleepy eyes. I am slowly giving up on Tarkovsky films as it marks to be not one of the areas of my brain to be interested for its abstract boredom. Apart from the short time period of the film causing the short review, there is not much to add either.