The Andrei Tarkovsky Collection [DVD] [1962]

Words cant describe my disapointment. After countless deleys, which lasted almost a year, i finally recived the box set and there is nothing deluxe about it.

Andrey Rublyov: The picture quality is superb but that still doesn't excuse the fact that the film is 10 min shorter then the previous AE release and 30 min shorter then the criterion directors cut.

Nostalgia: Again the picture quality is superb but the sound problems that plagued the first release are still there.

The Sacrifice: The picture format problem is still there.

As for the rest of the box set, i cant say that i noticed any diffrence in the picture and sound quality between the old and the new AE dvds.

The only extra is the 90 min documentary Meeting Andrei Tarkovsky, which is a shame because, the old releases were jam packed with feature length documentaries, cast and crew interviews, ...

It brakes my heart to have to give a one star review to seven masterworks by the imortal Andrei Arsenyevich Tarkovsky, but i think he deserves better.

It seems that, no matter how old you get, you can still be dumb & naive on occasions. Not only did I believe Artificial Eye's blurb that this box set was going to be a deluxe edition, I also believed their intended release date. Because of this I sold off the DVDs I owned of Tarkovsky's films over six months ago & have been waiting ever since.

Now I've got to buy most of them back again because this box set is about as disappointing as you can get. Rubylev is missing about 10 minutes (& I'm told there is an even longer version out there); Stalker comes without the second DVD material that accompanied the original AE release; Nostalgia still has the sound problems that appeared on their original DVD release of this film (unless every original negative print has become damaged, I really do not understand this. It certainly did not occur when the film was shown at the cinema).

This was a golden opportunity for the distributor to create a product that could have set a standard in terms of quality. Considering the Tarkovsky market will hardly be vast, what was the point of releasing the DVDs as a box-set unless to enhance both the director's reputation & (through a labour of love) Artificial Eye's?

Instead, after months of delays, they have simply re-released the original discs without many of the extras that appeared in the first releases (although there is a new documentary).

AE must know that those who love his films really love his films, and will be highly critical of any distributor who treats this film-maker with anything less than the respect he deserves. This is precisely what they have done here. A waste in almost every way.

I am so disappointed in this box-set that I am considering boycotting AE future releases. They have actually managed to alienate an admirer of their company. It seems I wasn't the only one who was stupid.

While I've read the other reviews and fully understand that people have their reasons for being disappointed, I'm pleased with my Tarkovsky box set (although I have to say it isn't really worth £40 - luckily Fopp were only charging £25 for it when I bought mine in early January).

Prior to buying this set I already owned The Sacrifice, Stalker and Nostalgia on Artificial Eye and there's no doubt they were better packaged editions. But I'm glad that I now finally have Solaris on DVD to spend hours marvelling at.

And while this set's not exactly 'deluxe' it isn't a tacky effort either - although the inclusion of a booklet of some kind would have been welcome.

All in all - if you want to see Tarkovsky's films on DVD, then this box set is fine. But if you really want to experience the Tarkovsky vibe, the only way to do it is by seeing the films at the cinema.