May 19, 1980
The premiere of Andrei Tarkovsky's film "Stalker" took place. Based on the Strugatsky brothers' novella "Roadside Picnic," the film is listed as one of the best films of all time by IMDb.
Can there be happiness at the expense of others' misfortune?
Tarkovsky became interested in the story of Stalker in 1973. The Strugatsky brothers agreed to adapt it for the screen. The script was rewritten numerous times at the director's request.
No telepathy, no ghosts, no flying saucers... none of that can happen. The world is governed by cast-iron laws, and it's unbearably boring... The Middle Ages were interesting. Every house had a brownie, every church had a God... People were young! And now every fourth person is old.
Filming began in 1977. The first thousand meters of film were ruined during development. There was a scandal, and some even suspected sabotage on the director's part—he was dissatisfied with the material, so they reshot the film. Ultimately, the film was reshot three times.
As for the idea of Stalker, Tarkovsky said, it can't be formulated verbally. It's the tragedy of a man who wants to believe, who wants to force himself and others to believe in something. To do this, he goes into the Zone. In a thoroughly pragmatic world, he wants to force someone to believe in something, but he fails… In other words, the film is about the victory of materialism.
Filming concluded in late 1978. The budget exceeded 1 million rubles. The film was first shown to the general public (https://youtu.be/773oXu4ZMy8) in Tomsk, in July 1979. The director of the Palace of Spectacles and Sports invited the director to personally present the film to the Tomsk residents. The Tomsk tour of "Stalker" lasted four days.
My God, what kind of people are these... You've seen them, their eyes are empty. Every minute they think about not selling themselves too cheap, about selling themselves as dearly as possible! So that they'll be paid for everything, every single movement of their soul! They know they weren't born in vain! Can people like that really believe in anything?
The Moscow premiere took place in May 1980, after which 196 prints were distributed to Soviet cinemas. The film also won the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury at Cannes.
In the Zone, the direct route is not the safest...
