Ivan's Childhood (1962)

"Ivan's Childhood", or by original name "Ivanovo destvo", it's one of the first movies directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, and actually the first more visible internationally gaining several awards when it was released. I avoided it until recently, because the subject of a child caught on the Russian front during WW2 wasn't the most joyful topic, especially given that my mood lately is not the best. Well, finally I decided to watch it, mainly due to its decent length (which criteria, as I was saying in another recent entry, in lately Hollywood standards looks to count in paying for a movie making by inch of film, without caring too much what's on that inch). My surprise, which wasn't actually that big considering a movie by Tarkovsky, was that we don't have a linear story = there is drama, but the way it's presented relaxes somehow the harshness (or well, depends I guess by how it's perceived by every viewer...). Ivan is a kid of around 10 years old, becoming an orphan during the war time, and growing up too quickly being involved in reconnaissance missions behind enemy lines. There's not much to say about the action. If you're waiting for a classic development with a beginning, middle and end, you need to look somewhere else. What we have here is a movie built on composition: characters, cinematography, editing, the context, etc. It's not story driven. I can say it's unbelievable how this looks today considering the year - 1962 - when it was produced, in black and white, made by Mosfilm in the Soviet Union. Leaving aside maybe some overacting, which is often present in old movies, technically if you just look at how the contrast is used in the composing the frame, the effects at that time and the camera movement, there would probably be already a lot to talk about. But also pretty useless :) it's better just to see it...

Rating: 4 out of 5