“In October, Ukrainian viewers will be able to watch in cinemas a unique restored version of the film, which was worked on by Martin Scorsese himself.”, — write: www.unian.ua
In October, Ukrainian viewers will be able to watch in cinemas a unique restored version of the film, which was worked on by Martin Scorsese himself.
A frame from the film “The Color of a Pomegranate” / photo by Arthouse TrafficOn October 3, 2024, the drama-parable “The Color of the Pomegranate” by Serhii Paradjanov (Sarkis Paradjanyan) – the great Ukrainian director of Armenian origin, who also gave the world the cult films “Flower on a Stone”, “Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors” – will be released in Ukrainian cinemas again on October 3, 2024. and “The Legend of the Suram Fortress”.Due to Soviet repression, the artist had a difficult life. However, despite this, he was still able to leave a bright mark in the history of Ukrainian culture. This year, for the second time in history, UNESCO declared the year of Serhiy Paradzhanov, emphasizing the significance of his work for world culture. And this year marks the 100th anniversary of the great director’s birthday.
UNIAN and the Arthouse Traffic film company have collected five reasons why “The Color of Pomegranate” should be seen on the big screens of cinemas.
A unique restored version with the participation of ScorseseThe restoration of “The Color of Pomegranate” was carried out by the Martin Scorsese Cinema Fund together with the Cineteca di Bologna. For this work, Scorsese received the prize of the Parajanov-Vartanov Institute in 2014.
A frame from the film “The Color of a Pomegranate” / photo by Arthouse TrafficThe world premiere of the restored version took place at the 67th Cannes Film Festival in 2014.
Good reviews from legendsMany world-famous directors consider “The Color of Pomegranate” a classic of world cinema. For example, the same Martin Scorsese called this film “a cinematic experience that remains timeless.”
Meanwhile, Jean-Luc Godard noted that “film can give you everything you could wish for.”
Deep meaningThe poetic parable film “The Color of a Pomegranate” tells about the life of the Armenian poet of the 18th century Sayat-Nova, from childhood to death. The film reflects the spiritual path, artistic development and internal conflicts that made him the main lyricist of his era. Sayat-Nova appears as a master of hoax, who himself fell into his own traps.
Georgian and Armenian actors Sofiko Chiaureli, Spartak Bagashvili, Melkon Alekyan and Vilen Galstyan played some of their most prominent roles in the film “The Color of Pomegranate”.
Soviet censorshipThis film was re-edited several times due to Soviet censors who could not understand the director’s complex allegories. As a result, the tape was released only in 1973, four years after filming.
After the release of the film, Parajanov was arrested, and the most famous directors of that time came to his defense: François Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, Federico Fellini, Luchino Visconti and many others.
A frame from the film “The Color of a Pomegranate” / photo by Arthouse TrafficThe influence of the film on world artEven after a decade, “The Color of Pomegranate” continues to inspire young creators. For example, in 1995, the singer Madonna released a music video for the song “Bedtimestory”, which used a number of images from Parajanov’s film.
A frame from the film “The Color of a Pomegranate” / photo by Arthouse TrafficIn 2020, Lady Gaga presented a music video for the song “911”, which also visually resembled “The Color of Pomegranate” by Serhiy Parajanov.
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