One Day in the Life of Andrei Arsenevich
Encyclopedia
One Day in the Life of Andrei Arsenevich is a 1999 French documentary film directed by Chris Marker
, about and an homage to the Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky
. The film was an episode of the French documentary film series Cinéastes de notre temps ("Filmmakers of our time"), which in over ninety episodes since 1966 concentrates on individual film directors, film people and film movements. The title of the film is a play on the title of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
's novella One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
.
and on his deathbed, during the final stage of his battle with cancer. The film mostly relies on images, with only sparse commentary, and concentrates mainly on giving insight into Tarkovsky's work and philosophy and on exploring the intersections between his private life and his work. The film starts with a scene from Tarkovsky first film Ivan's Childhood and ends with a parallel scene from his last film The Sacrifice. It shows the reunion of Tarkovsky with his son Andrei Jr., who had been allowed to leave the Soviet Union
only after Tarkovsky was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer
. Apart from Andrei Tarkovsky himself the film shows, among others, his second wife Larisa Tarkovskaya
, his son Andrei Jr., the editor of the film The Sacrifice Michal Leszczylowski
, the French actress Valérie Mairesse
, the Swedish cinematographer Sven Nykvist
and the Russian actress Margarita Terekhova
.
on 17 May 2000. The film was screened at the 2000 Telluride Film Festival
, the 2000 Toronto International Film Festival
, the 2000 San Francisco International Film Festival
, the 2000 Berlin International Film Festival
and the 2001 Doubletake Documentary Film Festival. The film was also screened at the Santa Fe Film Festival
in 2000 and won the best documentary award.
On June 21st, 2011, Icarus Films released One Day in the Life of Andrei Arsenevich on home video. Included on the disc, alongside the film, are two short films about contemporary Russia: Three Songs About The Motherland by Marina Goldovskaya, and In the Dark by Sergey Dvortsevoy
.
of the Chicago Reader writes that One Day in the Life of Andrei Arsenevich is "the best single piece of Tarkovsky criticism I know of, clarifying the overall coherence of his oeuvre while leaving all the principal mysteries in the films intact." whereas J. Hoberman
of the Village Voice called the film "a brilliant appreciation of the last great Soviet director, Andrei Tarkovsky".
by Tonino Guerra
and Andrei Tarkovsky
himself, Moscow Elegy
by Alexander Sokurov
, The Recall by Tarkovsky's son Andrei Jr., and Regi Andrej Tarkovskij by Michal Leszczylowski, the editor of Tarkovsky's The Sacrifice. Tarkovsky has also been featured in numerous documentaries about the history of cinema or the craft and art of filmmaking.
Chris Marker
Chris Marker is a French writer, photographer, documentary film director, multimedia artist and film essayist. His best known films are La jetée , A Grin Without a Cat , Sans Soleil and AK , an essay film on the Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa...
, about and an homage to the Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky
Andrei Tarkovsky
Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky was a Soviet and Russian filmmaker, writer, film editor, film theorist, theatre and opera director, widely regarded as one of the finest filmmakers of the 20th century....
. The film was an episode of the French documentary film series Cinéastes de notre temps ("Filmmakers of our time"), which in over ninety episodes since 1966 concentrates on individual film directors, film people and film movements. The title of the film is a play on the title of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn was aRussian and Soviet novelist, dramatist, and historian. Through his often-suppressed writings, he helped to raise global awareness of the Gulag, the Soviet Union's forced labor camp system – particularly in The Gulag Archipelago and One Day in the Life of...
's novella One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich is a novel written by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, first published in November 1962 in the Soviet literary magazine Novy Mir . The story is set in a Soviet labor camp in the 1950s, and describes a single day of an ordinary prisoner, Ivan Denisovich Shukhov...
.
Plot
The film combines clips from Tarkovsky's films with footage of Tarkovsky on the set of his last film The SacrificeThe Sacrifice
The Sacrifice is a 1986 film, and the final film by Russian film director Andrei Tarkovsky, who died shortly after completing it.-Synopsis:...
and on his deathbed, during the final stage of his battle with cancer. The film mostly relies on images, with only sparse commentary, and concentrates mainly on giving insight into Tarkovsky's work and philosophy and on exploring the intersections between his private life and his work. The film starts with a scene from Tarkovsky first film Ivan's Childhood and ends with a parallel scene from his last film The Sacrifice. It shows the reunion of Tarkovsky with his son Andrei Jr., who had been allowed to leave the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
only after Tarkovsky was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
. Apart from Andrei Tarkovsky himself the film shows, among others, his second wife Larisa Tarkovskaya
Larisa Tarkovskaya
Larisa Tarkovskaya , born Larisa Pavlovna Egorkina, and Larisa Kizilova during her first marriage, was a Russian actress and second wife of the film director Andrei Tarkovsky. She is best known for her role as Nadezhda in The Mirror...
, his son Andrei Jr., the editor of the film The Sacrifice Michal Leszczylowski
Michal Leszczylowski
Michal Leszczylowski is a Polish film editor who has worked mostly in the Swedish film industry. He has won several awards, including a Guldbagge Award for Creative Achievement in 1989 and a Jussi Award for Best Editing for his work on Tulennielijä in 1999.-Selected filmography:* Mammoth *...
, the French actress Valérie Mairesse
Valérie Mairesse
Valérie Mairesse is a French stage and film actress. She was nominated for the César Awards 1978 for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Repérages.-Selected filmography:* Tu Seras Mon Fils...
, the Swedish cinematographer Sven Nykvist
Sven Nykvist
Sven Vilhem Nykvist was a Swedish cinematographer. He worked on over 120 films, but is known especially for his work with director Ingmar Bergman...
and the Russian actress Margarita Terekhova
Margarita Terekhova
-Selected filmography:* D'Artagnan and Three Musketeers * Mama, I'm Alive * Dog in the Manger * The Blue Bird * The Mirror * Monologue * Hello, That's Me! -External links:...
.
Release
The film was first shown on the Franco-German TV channel ArteArte
Arte is a Franco-German TV network. It is a European culture channel and aims to promote quality programming especially in areas of culture and the arts...
on 17 May 2000. The film was screened at the 2000 Telluride Film Festival
Telluride Film Festival
The Telluride Film Festival was started in 1974 by Bill and Stella Pence, Tom Luddy and Jim Card in the town of Telluride, Colorado, United States. It is operated by the National Film Preserve....
, the 2000 Toronto International Film Festival
2000 Toronto International Film Festival
The 2000 Toronto International Film Festival, the 25th annual festival, ran from September 7 to September 16, 2000. Along with special events to commemorate the anniversary, there were a total of 330 films screened. There was a special screening of Sergei Eisenstein's Alexander Nevsky featuring...
, the 2000 San Francisco International Film Festival
San Francisco International Film Festival
San Francisco International Film Festival is the oldest continuously running film festival in the Americas. Organized by the San Francisco Film Society, the International is held each spring for two weeks, presenting an average of 150 films from over 50 countries...
, the 2000 Berlin International Film Festival
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
and the 2001 Doubletake Documentary Film Festival. The film was also screened at the Santa Fe Film Festival
Santa Fe Film Festival
The Santa Fe Film Festival is a Non-Profit Organization which presents important world cinema in a non-commercial context that represents aesthetic, critical and entertainment standards highlighting New Mexican film, new American and foreign film including revivals, retrospectives, independent...
in 2000 and won the best documentary award.
On June 21st, 2011, Icarus Films released One Day in the Life of Andrei Arsenevich on home video. Included on the disc, alongside the film, are two short films about contemporary Russia: Three Songs About The Motherland by Marina Goldovskaya, and In the Dark by Sergey Dvortsevoy
Sergey Dvortsevoy
Sergey Dvortsevoy is a filmmaker from Kazakhstan. His 2008 feature film Tulpan was Kazakhstan's 2009 Academy Awards official submission to Foreign Language Film category....
.
Critical reception
Although not widely distributed, the film received very positive reviews. Jonathan RosenbaumJonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum is an American film critic. Rosenbaum was the head film critic for the Chicago Reader from 1987 until 2008, when he retired at the age of 65...
of the Chicago Reader writes that One Day in the Life of Andrei Arsenevich is "the best single piece of Tarkovsky criticism I know of, clarifying the overall coherence of his oeuvre while leaving all the principal mysteries in the films intact." whereas J. Hoberman
J. Hoberman
James Lewis Hoberman , also known as J. Hoberman, is an American film critic. He is currently the senior film critic for The Village Voice, a post he has held since 1988.-Education:...
of the Village Voice called the film "a brilliant appreciation of the last great Soviet director, Andrei Tarkovsky".
Similar documentaries
Several dozen other documentaries about Andrei Tarkovsky have been produced. Most notable are Voyage in TimeVoyage in Time
Voyage in Time is a 63-minute feature documentary that documents the travels in Italy of director Andrei Tarkovsky in preparation for the making of his film Nostalghia....
by Tonino Guerra
Tonino Guerra
Tonino Guerra is an Italian poet, writer and screenwriter who has collaborated with some of the most prominent film directors of the world.-Biography:Guerra was born in Santarcangelo di Romagna....
and Andrei Tarkovsky
Andrei Tarkovsky
Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky was a Soviet and Russian filmmaker, writer, film editor, film theorist, theatre and opera director, widely regarded as one of the finest filmmakers of the 20th century....
himself, Moscow Elegy
Moscow Elegy
Moscow Elegy is a 1988 documentary film directed by Alexander Sokurov, about the later life and death of Soviet Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky. The film was originally intended to mark the 50th birthday of Tarkovsky in 1982, which would have been before his death...
by Alexander Sokurov
Alexander Sokurov
Alexander Nikolayevich Sokurov is a Russian filmmaker. His most significant works include a semi-documentary, Russian Ark , filmed in a single unedited shot, and Faust , which was honoured with the Golden Lion, the highest prize for the best film at the Venice Film Festival.- Life and work...
, The Recall by Tarkovsky's son Andrei Jr., and Regi Andrej Tarkovskij by Michal Leszczylowski, the editor of Tarkovsky's The Sacrifice. Tarkovsky has also been featured in numerous documentaries about the history of cinema or the craft and art of filmmaking.