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Ivan's Childhood Reviews

1962

70
from 1752 members

Visionary Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky's first film, MY NAME IS IVAN, is a powerhouse of visual and emotional impact and a portend of many themes Tarkovsky would develop throughout his legendary career. Ivan (Nikolai Burlyayev) is a 12-year-old boy roaming the destroyed landscapes of World War II Russia along the German .. Read more

Starring	Kolya Burlaev, Valentin Zubkov, Yevgeni Zharikov
Director	Andrei Tarkovsky
Genres	Drama, World Cinema

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Critic's review of Ivan's Childhood
View all critics' reviews (2)
- ...Brilliant....What's striking is the way Tarkovsky combines the lyricism of MIRROR with a straightforward account of the nightmarish experiences of Soviet soldiers on the German front...
- 199416
- - Sight and Sound
  - 30 Jun 2011 at 05:11
Write your own review »
Most helpful member's review of Ivan's Childhood
View all members' reviews (19)
- - 11
  - 0
  Russian cinema has ...
  
  Russian cinema has produced two masters of the medium in my view: Sergei Eisenstein and Andrei Tarkovsky. The rest is a barren desert of mediocre and ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 43054
- [Highly rated reviewer]
  - Zamy
  - 552 reviews
  - London
  - 04 Aug 2004 at 12:17
Most recent members' reviews of Ivan's Childhood
View all members' reviews (19)
- - 1
  - 0
  Difficult Upbringing
  
  Pros: Made before Tarkovsky became too poetic and surreal, this film grips and tears. WW2 realism is to the fore, but as always, a philosophical atmosphere ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 890474
- - angdavies
  - 49 reviews
  - Bruton
  - 11 May 2010 at 01:04
- - 1
  - 0
  A bit too
  
  Actually a decent film with a good plot but there were elements of it that detracted from the story-telling and it came across as cheaply made. Worth a look ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 873767
- - a customer
  - OXON
  - 18 Mar 2010 at 13:44
- - 1
  - 0
  Innocence Lost
  
  Confidently paced and with exquisite cinematography, this debut feature announced the emergence of Andrei Tarkovsky as a major new force in world cinema. Set ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 747994
- - KennyShovel
  - 23 reviews
  - Colchester
  - 25 Apr 2009 at 16:25
- - 0
  - 0
  classic
  
  This is Takovsky before he got too obscure. Must see.
  
  Report this review
- 682965
- - a customer
  - London
  - 07 Jan 2009 at 14:07
- - 0
  - 0
  Evocative imagery
  
  Think it's about time i tackled old Andrei, made my ascent up Mount Tarkovsky.
  
  And this film - his first - is probably the least difficult one to... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 666386
- - a customer
  - Buckfastleigh
  - 29 Nov 2008 at 20:57
- - 0
  - 0
  Squandered Synopsis
  
  After reading the synopsis I was really looking forward to this film, there was plenty of scope for interesting situations and sprawling character arcs. Ivan is... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 496730
- - MarkBarton
  - 5 reviews
  - Bristol
  - 20 Nov 2007 at 12:07
- - 0
  - 0
  Stark reality
  
  this must be one of the best films ever made.
  
  Poetic,dark,stunning,.
  
  By a highly underexposed director i believe it to also be the best ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 431879
- - helen giles
  - london
  - 20 Apr 2007 at 13:30
- - 1
  - 0
  Film at its best
  
  I loved it.It's almost not acting and the easy or not so easy switch into dreamy and surreal sequences. The imagery in black and white is just spectacular. ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 292072
- - a customer
  - Bedlinog
  - 05 Oct 2006 at 06:54
- - 2
  - 0
  A Different Look at the Soviet Union
  
  Everyone should watch this movie if it is only for the young actor who plays Ivan! Pleasure in being alive in a peaceful Springtime Russia contrasts with real ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 261484
- - a customer
  - Scotland
  - 06 Jul 2006 at 14:15
- - 2
  - 0
  Tarkovksy's début, but it's all there
  
  Although apparently quite different from other works by Russian master Andrei Tarkovsky - it has a coherent plot, for one thing - just about everything that ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 227413
- - Savage
  - 632 reviews
  - London, England
  - 02 Apr 2006 at 11:51
View all members' reviews (19)

- - 11
  - 0
  Russian cinema has ...
  
  Russian cinema has produced two masters of the medium in my view: Sergei Eisenstein and Andrei Tarkovsky. The rest is a barren desert of mediocre and ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 43054
- [Highly rated reviewer]
  - Zamy
  - 552 reviews
  - London
  - 04 Aug 2004 at 12:17
- - 2
  - 0
  amazing cinema
  
  Absolute stunning photography and a story about a boy scouting for the Russians against the Germans giving such a perfect performance that most adult actors ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 143116
- - Saty
  - Reading
  - 23 Aug 2005 at 11:19
- - 2
  - 0
  worth the effort
  
  it's not the most exciting script and certainly dictated by the political realities of film making in russia in the sixties but it is on every other level ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 180342
- - justin hooper
  - london uk
  - 01 Dec 2005 at 10:42
- - 2
  - 0
  Tarkovksy's début, but it's all there
  
  Although apparently quite different from other works by Russian master Andrei Tarkovsky - it has a coherent plot, for one thing - just about everything that ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 227413
- - Savage
  - 632 reviews
  - London, England
  - 02 Apr 2006 at 11:51
- - 2
  - 0
  A Different Look at the Soviet Union
  
  Everyone should watch this movie if it is only for the young actor who plays Ivan! Pleasure in being alive in a peaceful Springtime Russia contrasts with real ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 261484
- - a customer
  - Scotland
  - 06 Jul 2006 at 14:15
- - 1
  - 0
  Film at its best
  
  I loved it.It's almost not acting and the easy or not so easy switch into dreamy and surreal sequences. The imagery in black and white is just spectacular. ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 292072
- - a customer
  - Bedlinog
  - 05 Oct 2006 at 06:54
- - 1
  - 0
  Innocence Lost
  
  Confidently paced and with exquisite cinematography, this debut feature announced the emergence of Andrei Tarkovsky as a major new force in world cinema. Set ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 747994
- - KennyShovel
  - 23 reviews
  - Colchester
  - 25 Apr 2009 at 16:25
- - 1
  - 0
  A bit too
  
  Actually a decent film with a good plot but there were elements of it that detracted from the story-telling and it came across as cheaply made. Worth a look ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 873767
- - a customer
  - OXON
  - 18 Mar 2010 at 13:44
- - 1
  - 0
  Difficult Upbringing
  
  Pros: Made before Tarkovsky became too poetic and surreal, this film grips and tears. WW2 realism is to the fore, but as always, a philosophical atmosphere ... read more »
  
  Report this review
- 890474
- - angdavies
  - 49 reviews
  - Bruton
  - 11 May 2010 at 01:04
- - 0
  - 0
  great!!!
  
  if you're up for foreign films so definitly go for this subtle and sharp masterpiece.
  
  Report this review
- 65777
- - a customer
  - london, uk
  - 20 Jan 2005 at 19:23

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Critics' reviews
- ...Brilliant....What's striking is the way Tarkovsky combines the lyricism of MIRROR with a straightforward account of the nightmarish experiences of Soviet soldiers on the German front...
- 199416
- - Sight and Sound
  - 30 Jun 2011 at 05:11
- Tarkovsky's first feature is in many ways an orthodox Russian film of its period. Ivan is a teenage Soviet spy on the... read more on Time Out
- 45040
- - Time Out
  - 04 Nov 2008 at 00:15

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Buy from Amazon.co.uk

- - Buy
- Ivan's Childhood
  
  Visionary Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky's first film, MY NAME IS IVAN, is a powerhouse of visual and emotional impact and a portend of many themes Tarkovsky would develop throughout his legendary career. Ivan (Nikolai Burlyayev) is a 12-year-old boy roaming the destroyed landscapes of World ...