The Cinematic Poet | Tarkovsky’s Stalker: On The Road to Emmaus
Stalking the Holy Spirit through The Zone
Contemplating the Work of Andrei Tarkovsky | Part I
"The poet must stir souls, not nurture idolaters."
This is part one of my three-part series on the work of Andrei Tarkovsky. A deeply sensitive and serious soul who created works of beauty under an oppressive regime, Tarkovsky could be heralded as one of the greats of cinema, alongside Kurasawa, Bergman, Scorsese, and Kubrick. Yet I believe more than any of them, Tarkovsky was the most intent on stalking Heaven, as I would describe it. “I believe that to form a concept of art you first have to face another, more important question: why does man exist?” Tarkovsky explained, “We have to use our time on earth to improve ourselves spiritually. This means that art must serve this purpose.” (Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, 1988) For Tarkovsky, to improve ourselves spiritually is the noblest pursuit of the artist – or in this case the filmmaker – and in this way, Tarkovsky’s films become sacred spaces to quiet the mind and stir the soul. Whether or not Tarkovsky found Heaven in the end, weighed down by the sorrows of his life and leaving this world through cancer, is something we cannot know for certain, but I believe with all my heart that through his films we can touch the fringes of Heaven’s garment, and perhaps by doing so find our hearts renewed.
The Zone
“And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?”
— Luke 24: 31-32 (ESV)
They do not know how it happened or where it came from. A meteorite? Machinations of an alien intelligence? Whatever the answer, men who had been sent inside at the first never returned, and so it was quarantined. This is The Zone – where no men are allowed to tread, for no man dare to tread. Yet there are a few who have dared, and they are called Stalkers. Haunted and tormented guides untethered to the world, they’re drawn to The Zone like outcasts longing to return to their home, leading others on a doomed or glorious pilgrimage into its inexplicable landscape, where the laws of physics no longer apply. There at the center, if it can be reached, lies a place called The Room. It has been said that if you enter this Room, your deepest desire will be granted. People – desperate people – seek this room, because they seek what all men long for: happiness, that ultimate soul satisfaction. Or so it would seem.
Now the summer is gone,
As if it hasn’t been here.
In the sun it’s warm.
But it is not enough.
Everything what could come true
Like a five-fingered leaf
Fell straight into my palm,
But it is not enough.
Neither evil, nor good
Was lost in vain,
Everything burned in light,
But it is not enough.
Life kept me under its wing,
Took care of me and saved me,
I was lucky indeed.
But it is not enough.
The leaves were not burnt,
The branches were not broken.
The day is clean like glass,
But it is not enough.
—Arsenij Tarkovsky
Our Stalker is tasked with leading two men into The Zone, simply called Writer and Professor. As they begin the dangerous pilgrimage, first breaking through the blockades and secondly setting foot within The Zone, we begin to get a sense of each of them, that these three who are pressed forward by desire that goes deeper than words. Stalker is a man of burden, for like a child he loves The Zone, embraces it to himself although it cannot be fully understood, but it is a forbidden and treacherous place. It marks him as an “other”, someone who no longer belongs of this world. For even though he genuinely desires that all men should find The Room, he risks everything by leading men into it, even the stability of his family, a wife and child whom he always leaves behind when he returns to The Zone. Professor is a physicist, who is a pragmatic man, unflappable and realistic. He is the most reserved of the group, although Writer talks enough for all three of them. Loquacious, antagonistic, and somewhat self-preoccupied, Writer is the philosopher of the group, questioning, monologuing, and agonizing. He speaks like a cynic, but hides an artist’s sensibilities. He is the most obstinate of the two, and openly disregards many of Stalker’s instructions on how to traverse this land, nearly to his detriment. For walking into The Zone, the shortest path isn’t a straight line, and what may look like an ordinary grassy field or wet marsh could very well mean your death. As Stalker warns, “ . . .it’s not a place for peaceful walks. The Zone requires respect to itself. Otherwise, it punishes.” Like Moses who was instructed to remove his sandals before the burning bush having found himself upon holy ground, our disconsolate pilgrims must adapt a similar attitude of reverence and humility or else face the wrath of The Zone.
“For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. For they could not endure the order that was given, ‘If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.’ Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, ‘I tremble with fear.’”
— Hebrews 12: 18-21 (ESV)
Tarkovsky captures the unsettling immensity and grandeur of the “Untouchable” through sound and texture, weaving both together to construct the feeling of the horror of the sublime. From the beginning of their journey with the rhythmic sound of the railway cart leading them out of the city and into The Zone, to the sounds of water dripping or grass rustling, you feel the sacredness of the space; the sound itself becoming a meditation for those walking upon its venerated ground. The lush, melancholic score of Eduard Artemyev further expands the monastic soundscape, both haunting and heavenly all at once.
Where this nature of sound becomes the most evident is when our pilgrims reach what the Stalker terms, “The Meat Grinder”. It is a long, underground pipe tunnel that must be passed through in order to reach The Room, but it is a pathway that is treacherous, and there have been some who have perished there. Having drawn lots, Writer is the one chosen to go into the tunnel first and lead the way. As they make their way through in silence, all we hear are their footsteps through the grimy water that drips and pools at their feet. The endless echoes of these steps taken reverberate along the narrowing walls creating an unsettling chorus that fills you with apprehension. The sounds morph and change becoming something surreal, unearthly, and alien as our pilgrims are pressed on by an unseen force. The oppressive decibels become an anthem of Man’s dread before the incomprehensible.
In the same way, Tarkovsky uses texture to also convey both the meditative and formidable atmosphere of The Zone. The verdant and beautiful landscape of trees, brush, and stone lie in contrast with the derelict buildings and broken remnants of humanity. There are even tanks and human remains which are bound forever where they last stood, a testimony of Mankind's attempt at taming The Zone. The textures in of themselves tell the story of The Zone, where Nature becomes the fingerprint of the Holy, and the refuse of human hands crumbles and decays underneath its inexplicable power. Tarkovsky is enveloping us within the sensory, the tactile, for although our pilgrims have entered that which cannot be touched, we are made to always feel the weight of that Presence. It is as if the physical world becomes a veil that hides Its face, our hands brushing the surface of this empirical intercessor, but we cannot behold the bare reality that lies underneath.
It is on this perilous road that our pilgrims have been walking alongside the Divine, sensing It underneath them, above them, all around them, and yet always just beyond them. They converse with one another as they go and in doing so are grappling with these realities and the ideas that they present, but the way is difficult for them. Here they are slowly being stripped of their pretenses, of their belief in their ability to control, and their confidence in their own understanding of the world. On this road it is not safe for Man. There are many traps that lay before him. Certain he may feel of where he takes his steps, confident in his own way, but bitterly he will come to realize his error. Writer discovers this, when, impatient at the Stalker’s roundabout and methodical approach to The Room, he decides to take the straightforward path of his own choosing. As he approaches the building which they seek, there comes from the air a voice that cries, “Stop! Do not move!” Confused and bewildered, our pilgrims begin to realize that neither of them had spoken, but a Presence had stopped Writer’s approach. He is unable to go forward. In a quick flash, we see a gauzy veil pass across the archway, falling silently and absolutely. This veil becomes like the cherubim with the flaming sword that turned every which way to guard the entrance of Eden. Man cannot enter by this way.
The Room
“And you shall hang the veil from the clasps, and bring the ark of the testimony in there within the veil. And the veil shall separate for you the Holy Place from the Most Holy.”
— Exodus 26: 33 (ESV)
Finally, our downtrodden pilgrims have reached the entrance of the inner sanctum, this “holy of holies” which could answer their deepest desire. It is here, as they stand outside its threshold, that all is finally stripped away, the human heart made bare. Writer, who had been the one to step forward first after passing through ‘The Meat Grinder’, stumbles just outside the threshold of The Room – an otherworldly space of undulating sand-like dunes within a large, cavernous chamber. Stalker and Professor are in distress, not knowing what has befallen their comrade, but Writer is only bruised, However, it is his pride that is split open and bleeds. Here, at last, is the true heart of the Writer, as he delivers an anguished and impassioned monologue to the camera that is full of desperation, confusion, and deep wounds. We see he has the sensitive heart of the artist, easily wounded, easily thrown into despair, deeply feeling both the criticism and insatiable hunger of his readers that devour him today and would reject him tomorrow. Creation has become to him more like a pain than a pleasure, a “shameful occupation.” He despairs of anyone remembering him, he despairs if anything he writes will have any lasting and fruitful effect on the world at all.
Stalker, however, marvels at the Writer, claiming he will “live a hundred years now”, for the Zone has found him worthy to make it through “The Meat Grinder” and pass beyond; the Writer made humble at last. It is so beautiful how Tarkovsky has led us up to this soul-bearing confession. When we are introduced to Writer at the beginning of the film, he stumbles at threshold of the bar where he was to meet up with Stalker. Then later, as they continue through the Zone, the Writer stumbles a few more times along the way. It is as if we are being given a glimpse into Writer’s weaknesses through this subtle motif, which inevitably become his strength. Before the Zone, Writer cannot stand or keep his footing - being made low and meek despite himself. It is this humiliating exercise that allows him to pass through the most hazardous passages of The Zone and live.
This contrasts with Professor who appears to be the most put together, in control, and composed of the group. Writer has been the troublemaker – obstinate, willful, and disobedient – but as they stand outside The Room, it is the Professor who is revealed to have the heart most full of violence and hubris. His real intentions for taking the pilgrimage were not to receive, marvel, or to find happiness, but to destroy – for he brought with him a bomb to use to completely decimate The Zone!
Professor’s true outlook on the world is made evident in his fatalistic philosophizing on the horrors and ugliness of the world – of its wars, weapons, and conspiracies. He sees The Room as something that Mankind can use for his own selfish gain, something that Man can exploit and mold to his evil purposes. He is the most hopeless, the most fearful, and the most arrogant as he believes he is coming to save them all from an unimaginable apocalyptic future. Stalker, upon realizing Professor’s true intentions, weeps openly and pitifully like a child, arguing that Professor has misunderstood entirely the whole purpose and nature of the Zone. The Zone is not something that can be utilized, and it is impossible to come before it with selfish motives.
It is at this point of revelation that our pilgrims discuss the story of the previous Stalker named Porcupine, which begins to shed light on the true nature of The Zone. Porcupine was a great teacher who led others, like our Stalker, on their pilgrimages into The Zone. Throughout the film we have been given bits and pieces of his story – of how he lost his brother to “The Meat Grinder”, his sudden accumulation of much wealth, and then shortly thereafter his suicide. No one had been able to understand the exact nature of Porcupine’s fall from grace, but here and now, at the cusp of The Room with the Professor’s bomb looming over them, they come to understand fully the truth of Porcupine's fate, appropriately discerned and revealed by Writer who has been made humble enough to see some of this truth.
If Porcupine had stepped into The Room, as his wealth seems to indicate, why did he not save his brother by asking for his life back instead? Yet they understand now that whole point of it was, he did try. He begged and pleaded with The Room, but instead of The Zone returning his brother to him, it gave him material wealth. Like the rich young man before Christ, who had asked, “What must I do to gain eternal life?” found himself walking away in profound sorrow, for Christ had asked for his wealth. In this way, Porcupine, no matter how ardent his desire was to save his brother, found only riches returned onto him. The Zone knew what lay in Porcupine’s heart, and not being able to bear the condemnation of his own heart, he hung himself.
In dread and in awe, our pilgrims come to the realization of their own smallness before the majesty of The Zone, for here all men are exposed, to the very marrow of their souls, and there is no man alive who could ever fully and completely know the intentions of his own heart in such a way. This, reasons Writer, is why he refuses to go into The Room himself, because he fears what he will find there if he did. Ironically, even now, Writer questions the goodness of The Zone, and would rather live and die in his writer’s apartment then ever step foot into The Room lest he bring ruin upon himself and others. Only, once again, as he makes these statements, our Writer stumbles, and in a sickening moment of horror almost falls right into The Room itself! It is Stalker who pulls him back just in time. Thereafter, all three of our pilgrims are made silent, the Professor declaring pitifully, “Then I do not understand anything at all. What is the meaning to come here?” They huddle together upon this sacred ground and there is suddenly a rushing of rain and then the roaring of the train – like the thundering descent of Heaven. One by one, Professor dismantles his bomb and throws the pieces in the water that surrounds them.
They cannot, dare not, enter The Room, but they have nonetheless wrestled with the Divine. Like Jacob and the Angel, they have labored long and hard against this supernatural opponent, and they are made lame, but perhaps they are given a blessing and a new name?
“When a man is born, he is weak and supple, when he dies – he is strong and callous. When a tree grows, it is tender and gentle, and when it is dry and hard, it dies. Hardness and strength are companions of the death, suppleness and weakness express the freshness of living. That is why what has hardened, will not win...”
—Stalker
Transfiguration
“And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them.”
— Acts 2: 2-3 (ESV)
The Pilgrims have returned from The Zone. Stalker’s wife and his daughter, affectionately called Monkey, are waiting for him there, and they walk back home together. Once there, Stalker rages to his wife on the failure of belief from those he brings to The Zone. He is anguished, beside himself, and almost inconsolable. He desires to lead them to their happiness, to the soul satisfaction of true faith, and yet they cannot and do not enter in. He exclaims, “They do not believe in anything! Their organ with which they believe has atrophied!” His wife tries to comfort him, imploring him to have pity on these people, and she even offers to go with him to The Zone. Stalker, distressed at this, exclaims that his wife must not, afraid that she would fail too. Although Stalker loves The Zone, drawn to it like a thirsty man is drawn to water, even he cannot bear to enter its promises fully – a fact that Writer perceptively called him out on while they were standing before The Room. For Stalker it is enough to stand outside the inner chamber, to be a guide for others, but he himself does not have the ability to take part of what he desires with all his heart. He speaks of wanting to live in The Zone itself, taking his family to move there permanently, as he can only find true peace within its otherworldly dimensions. Yet he does not. He is pulled, drawn to it like a center point of gravity, but he never fully becomes a part of it. A veil remains between Man and The Zone, even those who are the purest of heart.
Only, you see – Stalker has a daughter. She is disfigured, unable to walk – this disability the mark that she is a Stalker’s child, as it has been known that the children of Stalkers are not normal. They are born with mutations and disfigurements in some form. Only here and now, as we sit with Monkey in the final shot of the film, we are given a revelation. She tilts her head and begins to turn her gaze upon the glass jars on the table. Slowly, imperceptibly at first, but then growing more pronounced – the glass jars begin to move! As she turns her gaze to each one, they move, sliding across the table, and then falling to the floor below. The Stalker’s child has been touched and transformed by The Zone itself!
Tarkovsky does exquisite work at bringing this revelation to us. Even if we look back to the beginning of the film, this was always evident – a testimony both mundane and profound. The film opens at the Stalker’s home as he wakes to the new day of infiltrating The Zone. The camera slowly pans across all three of them as they are sleeping in their bed together. Tarkovsky’s camera work is gentle, serene, and immersive as it invites us into this quiet and intimate setting of a family. This is how we are introduced to Monkey, as she sleeps next to her parents, and as the camera pans across then back again, we begin to hear a train approaching overhead. Remember, sound is being used as Tarkovsky’s canvas, and here at the early morning hours the sound of the train fills the quiet space like the mighty clamor of Heaven. As the camera pauses on the side table next to their bed, we can see how a glass full of water is trembling from the sound of the train passing by and moves ever so slightly towards the center of the table. This opening scene bookends with the climax of the film, as once again a train passes by overhead as Monkey demonstrates her psychokinesis powers. This also is like the moment when our pilgrims were humbled at the threshold of The Room. Each time the sound of the train becomes like a roaring herald of the Divine, which finds it climax now within the miracle of Stalker’s child.
In this same way, color is used to express this idea. The outside world is shown to us in tones of rusty and one-dimensional sepia, exhibiting the emptiness of a world that is without the existence of the supernatural. Yet, once our pilgrims enter The Zone, the film is in color. The green and blue toned landscape is felt through its somber and contemplative shades. In this same way, when Tarkovsky reveals to us the final purpose of The Zone, every time Monkey is featured at the end – she is shown in color. I even noticed that her headwrap stands in contrast to her surroundings in an earthy, golden yellow, like a halo signifying that she is not of this world. Her entire palette symbolically connects her to The Zone! For just like the tearing of the veil at that climatic moment when the Son of Man finished the work of the Cross and gave up His spirit, so here now the veil that resides over The Zone has been removed – the monotone color stripped to show the full spectrum of reality underneath. Like the sound from heaven of the mighty rushing wind when the Holy Spirit descended upon those who waited there, so now the spirit of The Zone roars in declaration of its having arrived. Mankind does not have the faith to enter The Zone and it does not have the strength to reside there, but now we see that the marvelous thing of it is - The Zone has come to Man!
“Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end. But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”
— 2 Cor 3: 12-18 (ESV)
Thank you for this insightful analysis of the film! It really allowed me to appreciate and understand it in a new way, as unfortunately much of the film went over my head upon my viewing, haha. There was also much that I didn't pick up on so I definitely feel richer now after having read this. :)