Tarkovsky's Masterpiece Solaris Streams Free This Month
The legendary 1972 Soviet science fiction epic that redefined the genre arrives on streaming platforms without cost, offering viewers a chance to experience cinema history.
A cinematic treasure that transformed science fiction forever becomes available at no charge to American audiences. The 1972 Soviet masterwork that cinema scholars regard as genre-defining will be accessible through free streaming beginning December 29.
The Vision Behind the Classic
Andrei Tarkovsky crafted this psychological space drama as his response to what he saw as technology-focused Western science fiction. The Russian filmmaker deliberately shifted away from gadgetry and special effects, instead exploring human emotion and philosophical questions. His approach stood in stark contrast to films like Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey, which Tarkovsky felt missed deeper spiritual elements.
The story follows a psychologist dispatched to investigate mysterious deaths and mental breakdowns aboard a space station. The planet below harbors an ocean that functions as a massive brain, manifesting the crew's buried memories and psychological wounds. Donatas Banionis and Natalya Bondarchuk anchor the cast in this haunting exploration of grief and human limitation.
Critical Acclaim and Lasting Impact
The film earned recognition from legendary director Akira Kurosawa, who counted it among his personal favorites. Critics have consistently praised its philosophical depth, with film-authority.com awarding a perfect score and calling it "a meditation, deeply rewarding on a spiritual level." Alternate Ending similarly gave top marks, describing it as "perfectly immaculate, using the chilliness of the way the location is framed to offset the profoundly human story being told there."
Even Hollywood couldn't replicate its magic. Steven Soderbergh's 2002 remake starring George Clooney followed similar plot points but failed to capture the original's haunting power. The 167-minute runtime allows Tarkovsky's deliberate pacing to build an atmosphere that Western cinema has struggled to match.
Where Philosophy Meets Science Fiction
Unlike typical space adventures focused on exploration and discovery, this work examines "the crushing limitation of human psychological experience," as CineVue noted. The ocean planet becomes a mirror reflecting the characters' deepest traumas, particularly the protagonist's struggle with his wife's death. Tarkovsky would later explore similar themes in his 1979 film Stalker, but this earlier work remains his most widely celebrated contribution to the genre.