Solaris (1972)

We arrive on a dilapidated space station orbiting the planet of Solaris after a lengthy trip aboard a cramped and humid shuttle. All we know about the planet is that it resembles an infinite sea, and that the station has reported multiple sightings of “guests” that the planet is somehow able to manifest. Is the planet attempting to communicate with the cosmonauts on the station, or is it simply observing the scientists while they observe it?

 

Solaris, Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1972 outing into the science fiction genre, attempts to answer the question of whether or not morality is tied to knowledge and, in this case especially, scientific progress. In humanity’s quest for unadulterated Truth, is there no limit, restriction, or condition that should be put in place to safeguard itself, amongst others, against possible repercussions that can be triggered at the slightest misstep?

 

With dazzling and dreamlike imagery, bittersweet hymns of nostalgia, and a resounding call to action for transcending the shackles of mortality through spirituality, Solaris stands as one cinema’s greatest explorations of morality and humankind’s place in the cosmos. 

 

“We don’t want to conquer space at all. We want to expand Earth endlessly. We don’t want other worlds; we want a mirror. We seek contact and will never achieve it. We are in the foolish position of a man striving for a goal he fears and doesn’t want. Man needs man!”

 

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