Solyaris (1972) ***This is the russian version, directed by Tarkovsky. I don't know if it is just me or if the plot is actually a little ambiguous and left to interpretation.
No, it's not just you. Lots of European art cinema then and art cinema now favor ambiguity. Tarkovsky sought not to be overly straightforward nor impenetrably symbolic or abstract; he sought somewhere in the middle.
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Tarkovsky seems to switch between B/W and color arbitrarily(or so it appears) in different scenes. It doesn't seem to accomplish anything other than making us aware of the underlying technology in film-making, which might be bad.
You missed stuff. There was a purpose behind the color switches. Some instances were extremely practical - to denote the past. Recall, the bald-headed man, Burton, playing the videotape at the home in the beginning in the movie. He was the young man being questioned in the b&w sequence.
Anyway, now that you've seen Solaris, you should seek out Tarkovsky's Stalker. A "science-fiction" that achieved what Tarkovsky wanted to do, but felt he failed with Solaris.
Personally, I also think Stalker is superior to Solaris. It's also his most exciting film.
Do not miss it.
I have to say, I agree with 24 here.
STALKER surprised the shit out of me. Really, Tarkovsky was the Soviet Union's best filmmaker (oh yeah, I could say Eisenstein, but guess what? Tarkovsky has a better batting average).
As for SOLARIS, I really liked it...and its better than the Steven Soderbergh remake (though I have to say, the remake is pretty good on its own, but it lacks that certain touch that Tarkovsky's picture held.)
Tarkovsky may have thought SOLARIS failed, I don't.
