The movies I watched this week are Solaris and Husbands. Both of these movies were intriguing and confusing at the same time. Both films appear to be unconventional and thought provoking. While they have their similarities they also have there differences such as, Husbands appears to be a low budget film, especially compared to Solaris.
In Solaris there was a clear direction of a protagonist Kris, helping with the space station and interacting with his ex-dead-wife. As I say clear, it was a long and frustrating journey watching Solaris. There were many shots that were over five minutes. I personally am not able to decipher the symbolism behind it. It also sounds like many others are in the same boat when reading this review from the San Fransisco International Film Festival in 1972. “It is a strange, demanding narrative, part scion-fiction, part dream-reverie, as though in response to the more psychological questions about the knowledge awaiting mankind in unexplored solar territory…”
In Husbands,I found myself continually asking myself what the point was and where it was going. It seems the protagonist is unclear in this film, where it could be all three of the men on the journey, or individually. The goal seemed blurry besides escape from personal realities to “let loose”. They even managed to travel to London from NYC and gamble, drink, and have affairs. They advertised this film as a comedy and drama but I didn’t see it as very funny.
The director, film-writer, and actor, John Casavettes, had an interesting dynamic to the film and it’s success. In 1971, he had an interview with Playboy and he said quite a few things that seem to resonate with his films.
“It’s bullshit when people say that ego is a bad trip. It’s the only trip. You are who you are because of your ego, and without it nothing counts. My sense of self makes me competitive.”
This could easily be the theme and all encompassing statement for Husbands. Then again, this can be applied to Solaris as the scientists in the space station are trying to deal with their own psychy and finding not only the truth but their reality as well.
The films themselves are also drastically different in some direction and technicalities. In Solaris, they seems to have a more modern filming technique of wider shots and visuals while Husbands, had many zoomed in close ups that seemed uncomfortable. This film also had shakier hand work as well. A program note from 1972 talks about how, “”Immaculate photographed, Solaris is the nearest the cinema has come to capturing the complexities of contemporary science fiction, with its intermingling of time and memory, acute uneasiness, and emphasis on elegance and style.” I do agree with this because there is so much to understand and contemplate in the film, that the visuals are a key aspect for success. In ‘Up to Our Eyes in It’, there is interesting information about theory and practicing in widescreen film. They talk about the advantages of different view points and depth.
There is an intesting connection to globalization in the two films. Solaris is definitely beyond in the sense of cosmos and space. Originally Russian, the film still has a common theme and awareness to it that is appreciated and understood by anyone. In Husbands, they travel to NYC to London and fraternize with many different women and I can see a sense of “the Americans” as I watch the films. Loud, drunk, and horny men trying to get over their dead friend. There were also many moments of awkwardness throughout the film. Such as them bringing their “chosen girls” back to the room in London after gambling.
Both films have a sense of confusion and also suspense of the conclusion or even what the plot is going to be. This book about Andrei Tarkovsky is an interesting insight into the man who directed such a film, “If you look for a meaning, you’ll miss everything that happens.” Many years after the death of Andrei Tarkovsky, the mystery of his films remains alive, well, and still being figured out.
In this video below, you can see Casavettes directing and it is clear why some of his scenes didn’t necessarily make sense to me, but made one hundred percent to him. It is very interesting to read about the man and then watch his work. In this book, ‘John Casavettes‘, there is a ton of information on the man that truly made a name for himself in his era.
This is not a comparison that I would have thought possible at first glance, but your quote from John Cassevettes is everything. It is true that without your Ego you are nothing. It is a good way to compare these two movies. Solaris, still does not interested me in anyway, but it is my understanding that there is a mind provoking suspense to it. Husbands also seems to be a movie that provokes the mind, and begs you to understand it. I am glad that you put that last clip from youtube in, it definitely helped to understand how he was directing.