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Solaris

Play trailer Poster for Solaris PG 1972 2h 49m Sci-Fi Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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92% Tomatometer 66 Reviews 89% Popcornmeter 25,000+ Ratings
A psychologist is sent to a space station orbiting a planet called Solaris to investigate the death of a doctor and the mental problems of cosmonauts on the station. He soon discovers that the water on the planet is a type of brain which brings out repressed memories and obsessions.
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Solaris

Solaris

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Critics Consensus

Solaris is a haunting, meditative film that uses sci-fi to raise complex questions about humanity and existence.

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Critics Reviews

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Mark Olsen Los Angeles Times 05/18/2017
The film has a hypnotic pull, drawing the viewer deeper and deeper into its enigmatic adventure by crafting a world all its own. Go to Full Review
Clayton Dillard Slant Magazine 05/06/2017
2.5/4
Andrei Tarkovsky's pacing is less moved by narrative detail than thematic and metaphorical suggestion. Go to Full Review
Richard Brody The New Yorker 06/16/2014
Tarkovsky's speculative visions enfold the mysteries of death and rebirth, the lost paradise of childhood, the power of art to define identity, the menace of science as destructive vanity ... Go to Full Review
JD Duran InSession Film 08/01/2024
A
The film's pacing will be a drudge for some audiences and perhaps Tarkovsky could have trimmed back a bit but the patience he demands has purpose. The imagery, details and spiritual beauty of this film will have a big payoff... Go to Full Review
Dave Giannini InSession Film 02/28/2024
A-
Tarkovsky, in this moment, and throughout the runtime, forces us to face the fact that we are so focused on our great triumphs, that we forget the people we have lost and where our focus should be. Go to Full Review
Eddie Harrison film-authority.com 08/31/2023
5/5
…as philosophical as sci-fi gets, Solaris is a meditation, deeply rewarding on a spiritual level… Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Ekaterina K @RT79505847 8h I don't even know why I'm surprised by the shallowness of the majority of the reviews here, but I am. Hey, I know y'all barely read in highschool in the US but please try to look into your soul and find the meaning of life, because this is what the movie is about. It is NOT A SCI FI MOVIE, guys! It's not. It's a philosofical and psychological drama, what else did you expect from a grand master Russian director? Have you not read Dostoyevsky? Anyway. Brilliant movie. Just as always. It has almost nothing to do with Lem's book, only the plot. Tarkovsky explores, as always in his movies, a human's relationship with God, with another human and with himself. It's slow because the point of this movie is to make you look into your own reflection and find answers. And you can learn a lot about Russian culture, our view of being human and our morality which stems from our religion and history. A lot of references and metaphors in this movie. Definitely one you have to see a few times. See more Hamza V @RT81971548 Nov 7 Tarkovsky communicated more through visual language than dialogue. The cinematography is unbelievably good. The silence and ambiguity are almost haunting. The nerve-racking ending stays with you long after the credits roll. At times, some scenes might seem frustratingly mundane, but they have layers of meaning. It's almost as if each scene is a poem meant to be deciphered. Truly brilliant. See more Mikael H @Mikael590 Jun 12 The very last shot earned it an extra star. I am otherwise very close to calling it “unextraordinary”. That being said, my dissatisfaction with the film is not due to any lack of substance; rather its loaded with subtext and meaning but the surface narrative is like still water. Perhaps I prefer a film to primarily give me a story through which I can lend my own experience to its weight rather than lean so heavily on me to bring my own thoughts to it to lend it its life. The balance can be struck (Stalker being a better example) but in Solaris’ case, it was pretty flat. See more FEllo B @RT14359156 May 28 Where is the download link for Solaris.exe? See more Esra Y @RT95409318 04/10/2025 If you let him, Tarkovsky's Solaris will take you to an intergalactical journey which makes you reconsider and question so much about humanity, existence and complexity of psychology. See more Abdirahman B @bileyassein 02/09/2025 I have too many questions after watching this rushian movie. These scientific and psychological concepts are completely new to me but I love it. See more Read all reviews
Solaris

My Rating

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Movie Info

Synopsis A psychologist is sent to a space station orbiting a planet called Solaris to investigate the death of a doctor and the mental problems of cosmonauts on the station. He soon discovers that the water on the planet is a type of brain which brings out repressed memories and obsessions.
Director
Andrei Tarkovsky
Producer
Viacheslav Tarasov
Screenwriter
Fridrikh Gorenshteyn, Stanislaw Lem, Andrei Tarkovsky
Distributor
Image Entertainment Inc., Criterion Collection, Fox Lorber
Production Co
Unit Four
Rating
PG
Genre
Sci-Fi, Drama
Original Language
Russian
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 20, 1972, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters)
May 12, 2017
Release Date (Streaming)
Jul 21, 2009
Runtime
2h 49m
Sound Mix
Mono
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)