Solyaris (Solaris)

Solyaris (Solaris) (1976)

  • 96% of critics liked it
    (45 reviews)

  • 89% of users liked it
    (23,089 ratings)

The cosmonauts on a space station have strange hallucinations, which seem to originate from the planet they are orbiting.

Unrated, 2 hr. 47 min.
Directed By
Andrei Tarkovsky
Written By
Andrei Tarkovsky, Friedrich Gorenstein
Genres
Drama, Art House & International, Science Fiction & Fantasy
In Theaters
Oct 6, 1976 Wide
On DVD
Nov 26, 2002
Kino International

Critic Reviews

  • Jay Cocks, TIME Magazine

    The effects are scanty, the drama gloomy, the philosophy of the film thick as a cloud of ozone. The plot is not all that original either.

  • , Variety

    Andrei Tarkovsky spins a strange, slow but absorbing parable on life and love in the guise of a sci-fi theme.

  • Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

    More an exploration of inner than of outer space, Tarkovsky's eerie mystic parable is given substance by the filmmaker's boldly original grasp of film language and the remarkable performances by all the principals.

  • Richard Eder, New York Times

    This complex and sometimes very beautiful film is about humanity but hardly at all about politics.

  • Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

    There was so much to think about afterward, and so much that remained in my memory.

Read all 18 critic reviews

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Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

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Featured Audience Ratings

  • First L


    Evolutionary philosopher Brian Thomas Swimme recently hosted an enlightening PBS program called "Journey of the Universe". In it, Swimme postulates that there exists an awareness or sentience to energy "that is more than what takes place in elementary particles but… More

  • Jan Marc M


    Solaris poses the question, "does the capacity for logic and emotion conceive Humanity?" A source of mysterious energy, Solaris is a fictional ether that renders hallucinations to a group of scientists aboard a laboratory in space. A science fiction feature aware of the… More

  • Greg S


    An astronaut on a satellite circling a mysterious planet that may be alive meets, and falls in love with, a hallucinated version of his dead wife. A fascinating anfd thought-provoking mix of hard science fiction, arthouse drama and heavy existential symbolism; making a… More

  • Steven C


    Now, I will say this first, I like Steven Soderbergh's adaptation of Stanislaw Lem's novel more than Andrei Tarkovsky's. This version of "Solaris" is extremely good in it's own ways mind you. Tarkovsky's film is deeply emotional and deeply… More

  • Melvin W


    Although very slow, Solaris is an awesome movie. Many complain about the pacing, but I enjoyed the pace which slowly unveils the great story. It is plagued in mystery and leaves you asking a lot of questions.

Read all 20 featured audience ratings