2001 Tarkovsky Prize 1st Place: Daniel Kleinman

CLEAR SYMBOLS IN THE CONFUSING IMAGERY OF ANDREI RUBLEV

by Daniel Kleinman

Throughout his professional career Andrei Tarkovsky would deny the presence of symbolism in his films. He preferred to call it imagery. It may not be easy to spot and when it can be, it is often very complex, but the film is indeed rife with symbols. Some, such as the use of horses, are so multifaceted in the context of the whole film it is nearly impossible to decipher them as a whole, though on a scene-by-scene basis they become much clearer. Other symbols, such as roads, doorways, etc. have such broad connotations that discussion of them is equally difficult. There are, however, several clear themes which are illustrated by the symbolism which accompanies them. One of the most interesting and consistent throughout the film is the presence of birds. Throughout Andrei Rublev, Tarkovsky masterfully uses many types of birds to reveal beautiful and insightful meanings and enhance the film in general.

Rublev’s portrayal of a white bird as an emblem in one of his paintings, (which are featured in color at the end of the film), served, I predict, as the perfect inspiration for the use of this symbol. Though this bird symbol, particularly white birds, does not morph into various meanings throughout the film like the symbols of horses do, it does carry numerous related connotations that reveal themselves more prominently in specific scenes than in others. Chickens and roosters, for example, do not consistently carry the same themes as the other birds discussed here, though they definitely do have specific meaning and specific purposes, the clearest example being that of the rooster in the window when “The Bell” sequence first begins.

The first major scene featuring the imagery of birds is during “Theophanes the Greek.” Andrei and Foma, his apprentice, run across Theophanes in the forest while Andrei criticizes Foma’s faith and character. Theophanes promptly agrees and reinforces what Andrei says when he tells Foma that, “He should be beaten every Saturday like a dog.” At this point Foma comes across a dead white bird, presumably a goose. He stares at it for a while, and then removes a beetle from it with a stick. The scene ends with Foma examining the bird’s lifeless wing. In this scene the bird represents Foma’s faith. Foma has never heard such an interpretation of his own faith and character from someone as prominent as Theophanes the Greek, and those harsh comments lead Foma to reexamine and improve his faith, symbolized in his removal of the beetle and examination of the wing.

The next major scene featuring the symbolism of birds is “The Holiday.” Four or five birds are seen falling from the dark trees as Rublev treks through the forest towards the Pagan rituals. He knows that sacrilege and sin is there waiting for him, but his curiosity pushes him forward. The falling birds shouldn’t be interpreted as a lack of faith of the Pagans, as they had no faith to begin with. Rather, the birds should be interpreted as the crumbling of the strict form that Rublev’s faith expresses itself in. Though he won’t be truly awakened to his true understanding of his own faith until the end of the film, the birds here symbolize the beginning of the end for his severely limited “Monk’s form” of Christianity.

 In case the audience has not picked up on the constant theme of birds and their symbolism of faith and Christianity they are reminded very clearly when the stonemason remarks twice how the carvings of the Prince’s church are like the song of birds, light and beautiful.

In the most dramatic scene featuring the symbolism of birds, two large geese are seen flying/falling down from the Cathedral roof into a huge fire and total chaos below in “The Raid.” These birds symbolize the Prince’s loss of faith as well as a general assault on Christianity and God Himself, as we can be led to believe by the preceding shot of the remorseful and regretful Prince with his men stripping the gold from the top of the church.

In an interesting and insightful scene, towards the beginning of “The Bell” a bird is seen flying across the screen, staying level and not losing altitude. Below it the bell casters are digging the casting pit. Here the bird symbolizes not a loss of faith but rather a progression of it because people are coming together in unity to glorify God.

The last, momentary shot of a bird, aside from the bird on the emblem featured in the color sequence, is the most difficult to decipher. Also in “The Bell” Kirill and Andrei take refuge under a tree in a storm, and Kirill is holding a small black bird. If one is to look at the film in terms of black and white carrying their common connotations of bad and good, respectively, then the small black bird could symbolize Kirill’s vanity and betrayal, which have fueled his life for as long as we, the audience, have seen him. These weaknesses caused him to leave the monastery, and they also caused him to come back to Andrei, indirectly. At this point in the film, however, though vanity and betrayal remain a major part of his history, Kirill now has them under control, hence the black bird he is holding.

Tarkovsky paints a myriad of emotions in Andrei Rublev.  The pictures are so rich and so complex that the term imagery may be more appropriate to use than the term symbolism. These birds, however, remain clearly symbolic.  They reflect the faith and character of the people, and they come together as major symbols not only in this film but in all of Tarkovsky’s works: the enduring nature of Mother Russia, the Russian people, and the faith that Tarkovsky so strongly believed in.