If you watch that dream scene at the river, with all those people holding torches and the geese flying, you can clearly see where this was taken from-Andrey Rublyov by Tarkovsky. There is a scene identical to this part where Andrey Rublyov watches the pagan festival. I believe this was a salute to Tarkovsky, a director who has inspired so many directors, specially in Eastern Europe.
shareYou may be right.
shareIt's eerie in the coincidence of what you mention. I thought about this exact similarity. Incidentally, I watched these two movies back-to-back yesterday. In fact the rafts or narrow boats too resemble the ones from the Andrei Rublev. But the background music in "Life of...." was extraordinary.
shareGeez...no wonder I feel something Russian about this film. Beside the river scene, many chaotic situation and symbolic parts may also be interprated as a salute to Tarkovsky. Gotta watch Andrei Rublev again!
What made the universe made me.
bathing in the river is an ancient tradition of spiritual cleaning that still exists in different cultures i.e. Hindu. Tarkovsky's 'Andrei Rublev' shows the celebration of Ivan Kupala, an ancient Russian pagan fest. I'd doubt that Kusturica took the idea from Tarkovsky. Dig deeper: where do we all come from?
shareKusturica is a great Tarkovsky fan. So I think this was intentionnal.
"I don't have time for a drink with you. Have you got a phone number ?"
The Mother and the Whore
umm that is a gypsy tradition, very ancient mind you, on djurdjevdan(St. George's Day) to cleanse themselves in the river
so it may be a Tarkovsky tribute but its also a gypsy tradition, ill bet its more to do with the gypsys though
I totally agree, it is a leftover of pagan rites , which was kept up to present date mostly thanks to gypsies. It celebrates the welcome of spring by making flower wreaths and decorating houses, front gates, heads of youth with them...The symbolism of the ritual bathing in the river is omnipresent in all traditions ( Hindu, Buddhism,Russian,Slav,Roman Catholic...), and one more interesting thing are the bonfires, and twirling lit twigs used on the eve of the holiday, on village crossroads and other dark places, to scare away malevolent spirits.
shareIn addition, right at the end of the movie when the gambling uncle is in the church, you can see a horse in the distance, which I think is a homage to Tarkovsky too, who regarded horses as symbols of peace and purity.
shareThere is another scene in this film that is even more Tarkovsky like, the levitation of the wife when she is giving birth.
- No animal was hurt during the making of this burger -
I thought the woman levitated because the child inside her had the same telekinetic powers of his father (thus proving he was, in facts, his child)
-What has been affirmed without proof can also be denied without proof.- (Euclid)