Tarkovsky Haunts Cinema

Andrei Tarkovsky is one of cinema’s true poets. If you’re even a little hesitant to look at film as a legitimate art form just watch a film, any film, from the late Andrei Tarkovsky. He has a way of stretching time and action into images that get into the psyche of the characters. I remember watching Nostalgia for the first time, a scene where one of the characters attempts to take a candle from one end of a drained pool to the other without it going out, and it was affecting in its context. In a 9 minute shot he effectively captures the melancholy of his character without dialogue.

Tarkovsky isn’t for everyone. Often times people find his work boring, long, and pretentious. That’s a word, I find, that’s used too often with artists who try to communicate something real with their art, “pretentious”. I think artists who try to say something real or human are too often accused of preaching.

Something that Tarkovsky said of one of his films, Stalker, was that it wasn’t dull enough. He knows the effect his films have on a potential audience. He uses it as a tool to get under the audiences skin and accentuate the material, or to amplify something a character may feel. Though Tarkovsky certainly isn’t the only one to use long draw out takes to effectively move the audience to notice, he very knowingly uses it to tell a story.

Having written and directed only 7 feature films (from 1962 to 1986) he manages to capture a dark human portrait that spans the middle ages, modern times, and the future. He explores timeless human struggles that deal with the human condition. It can be pretty grim, and I know for a lot of people it’s just not interesting, but if really given a chance there’s value in this darkly alluring corner of cinema. Films that don’t necessarily entertain but probe your mind with subtle imagery and sound.

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Justin Kataquapit

Justin Kataquapit was born in Moose Factory, Ontario, raised in various towns across northern Canada. He has an interest in classic literature, cinema, and has a wide array of interests in the arts. He is currently in his final year in the Professional Writing program at Algonquin College.

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Things Have Changed

I’ve been listening to Bob Dylan for about 15 years now. After finding a Greatest Hits CD containing a retrospective of his entire career. I didn’t get into it all at once, Dylan’s music came to me in stages in almost chronological order. It was Blowin’ in the Wind, Don’t Think Twice It’s All Right, It Ain’t Me Babe, these songs lyrically and melodically had captivated me. Then later his 60’s rock efforts which are legendary. It went on from there.

Now, Dylan’s music isn’t very niche anymore. As a matter of fact Bob Dylan is history’s most decorated musician. He’s been the recipient of over thirty grammy’s, a Pulitzer Prize, presidential medal, an Academy Award, a golden globe, and a Nobel Prize for Literature, of which he’s the only musician to ever receive. With all of this to his name there’s still a fair share of people who just don’t like his music at all. His voice seems to be the barrier. Not quite sure what to make of that. There’s plenty of songs worthy of praise when it comes to his singing ability, most recently, “I Could Have Told You” on the Triplicate album.

Over the years my interest in music has died down. Other than Leonard Cohen and Mark Knopfler, and the occasional Springsteen my music taste has lied dormant for the past few years. Dylan’s music has always been more than just music though, it was the lyrics and their depth that has held me in deep interest of his work over the years. He once said of Woody Guthrie’s music that you could learn how to live just by listening to his music, in a lot of respects that goes for Bob as well. The timeless lyrical quality of his early songs, all the way up to his latest album of original material in Tempest. There’s just something about Dylan, and I’ll probably never quite be able to successfully explain what that is, but that’s okay. I know Bob will still be around “When The Deal Goes Down”

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Justin Kataquapit

Justin Kataquapit was born in Moose Factory, Ontario, raised in various towns across northern Canada. He has an interest in classic literature, cinema, and has a wide array of interests in the arts. He is currently in his final year in the Professional Writing program at Algonquin College.

Dylan’s music has always been more than just music.

Reflection on Bergman

When you ask somebody about any number of film makers they’ll most likely draw a blank, even among film students. Throughout film history several giants stand out among all film makers, like Ingmar Bergman, Andrei Tarkovsky, Stanley Kubrick, Frederico Fellini, Akira Kurosawa. There’s many more that fit the title of legendary. So why have so many of these names fallen into near obscurity? I know there are many people that recognize and revere these artists and their work, but to others less versed in film history these are just obscure names.

Of the film makers mentioned here, Ingmar Bergman remains the most personal to me. His vast artistic output is the embodiment of the human experience, which I suppose is a pretty bold claim. Some would say his work consists of morose, philosophically bleak portraits of the human condition. I consider it an unflinching look at our darkest impulses and fears, but not just that. It would be a misinterpretation of Bergman to pigeonhole his films as dark, as there are several shades of his work that encompass lighthearted comedies concerning romance to fragile human struggles that conjure phantoms.

The first film I saw of his was titled Wild Strawberries, a film made in 1957 during one his most creative periods, a film about an aged man who goes on a road trip to accept an honorary degree. Along the way he is confronted by his life and its inadequacies. It’s an introspective drama that addresses the concerns of mortality, expectation, and self-worth. I saw it several years ago not knowing who Bergman was, and found myself redefining my own view on film as an art form.

With over 50 films by Bergman there’s no shortage of material to enjoy. I’ve included a short video essay by Criterion below that further explores Bergman’s themes.

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Justin Kataquapit

Justin Kataquapit was born in Moose Factory, Ontario, raised in various towns across northern Canada. He has an interest in classic literature, cinema, and has a wide array of interests in the arts. He is currently in his final year in the Professional Writing program at Algonquin College.

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Welcome to Room and Board

Room and Board is a blog all about the alternative, the interesting, and sometimes the down-right strange. While others focus on the mainstream we focus on more downstream entertainment. Whether it’s a roll of the dice or a swing of the sword: foam or otherwise.

The alternative and the variance can swing between the bright screen and hiding out in the woods dressed up as monsters and beasts of assorted kinds. From improv to the flipping of a page, and the bourgeoning of imagination. From the artistic stylings of Japanese anime or manga. Canadian entertainment, and all the way down to the study and knowledge of various cheeses.  

We will look at the strategies frequently often employed in different board games. The ways for you to improve or just our opinions on how you should be playing.

While cinema may not be considered off beat, certain genres often go under the radar. The works of Ingmar Bergman, Andrei Tarkovsky, and Terrence Mallick may be considered very hard to classify. Will be looked into as well.