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Erland Josephson, Susan Fleetwood, Allan Edwall, Guðrún Gísladóttir, Valérie Mairesse ... see more see more... , Filippa Franzen , Tommy Kjellqvist , Sven Wollter , Tommy Kjellquist

The Sacrifice, director Andrei Tarkovsky's final film, begins in Bergmanesque fashion on a small, remote island, where friends and family gather for drama critic Alexander's (Erland Josephson) birthda... read more read more...y celebration. The revelry is interrupted by a radio announcement: World War III has begun, and Mankind is only hours away from utter annihilation. Each of the guests reacts differently to the news: the most dramatic response is Alexander's, who promises God that he'll give up everything he holds dear--including his beloved 6-year-old son -- if war is averted. Allan Edwall, a local mailman with purported mystical powers, offers to intervene with the Creator on Josephson's behalf. The Sacrifice is so dependent upon its visuals and overall mood that any attempt at a detailed synopsis would be woefully inadequate. The willingness of Tarkovsky's protagonist to forego all his possessions may well have sprung from the cancer-ridden director's awareness that he, too, would soon be giving up everything to face his Maker. The Sacrifice won four awards at the Cannes Film Festival, including the Grand Prix. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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91% liked it

5,793 ratings

Critics

82% liked it

28 critics

PG, 2 hr. 25 min.

Directed by: Andrei Tarkovsky

Release Date: November 1, 1986

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DVD Release Date: May 16, 2000

Stats: 314 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (314)

  • gator681
    July 20, 2005
    gator681
    [font=Century Gothic]"The Sacrifice" starts out with a famous journalist, Alexander(Erland Josephson), celebrating his birthday with friends and family. Interrupting the celebrations, is a catastrophe which may signal the end of the world.[/font]

    "The Sacrifice" has some very ... read moreinteresting things to say about faith but it takes a wrong turn about half way through and never recovers. It is also a perplexingly plodding piece of work that goes on for much too long. Andrei Tarkovsky's decision to film a good deal of the movie in long shots makes it almost impossible to identify with any of the characters. Sven Nykvist's cinematography is certainly pretty enough to look at, though.
  • shitfaced8
    October 29, 2011
    shitfaced8
    First Andrei Tarkovsky movie I've seen, and his final feature. Will definently be looking forward to seeing more of his movies in the near future.This one concerns a theatre critics birthday party amongst close family and friends. When a news broadcast announces that WWIII has be... read moregun and nuclear holocaust is imminent. the attendees at the part react in various ways. Most extreme is Alexander who offers to sacrifice his family, his house and his son for this to reverse itself. So much of why this film works is based on its extreme minimalist approach and the mood it evokes, making a plot synopsis that is much more descriptive of what this movie is irrelevent. Apparently there are only 115 shots in this movies 2.5 hour run time, with shots that go on from 6-8 minutes commonplace. The opening shot lasting 9+minutes. So if you don't want to watch a movie that moves really slowly you might want to avoid this one. The cinematography is perfect though, and the minimalist approach i found really emotive. Definently a must see for more adventurous film fans.
  • jsbond008
    July 30, 2009
    jsbond008
    The Sacrifice is the kind of movie that you know something very special is happening while in the process of watching it. I feel more mature now that i've watched it. Felt myself growing as this theatrical piece developed its complexities in front of me...for hours upon end. oh t... read morehe horror, suffering, women crying. enough.
  • jes25924
    August 21, 2008
    jes25924
    Andrie Tarkaovsky's final film takes elements from Ingmar Bergman, "I Am Cuba" with a story that if not influenced by, is a kind of psychic cousin to the later works of Philip K. Dick.

    A family on a small Swedish island, find out the world is abo...(read more) ut to end(there... read more's nowhere to hid and nothing that can be done)...planes heard overhead, and television warnings are all anyone knows. So far this doesn't sound too different from Bergamn's "Shame" where a couple try to escape from the world and war, on a similar small Swedish Island. The difference is where Bergman, dissects his characters down to nothingness, Tarkovsky includes mysterious post-men obsessed with miracles, a maid who may be a powerful witch, a man with the chance to re-create the universe, and a love making scene in mid-air?

    That Tarkovsky moves with such subtly between psychological study, religious allegory, and science fiction tropes, should'nt be too much of a surprise considering his early philosophical SF films like "Solaris", and "Stalker"(which I may re-watch, cus of this film, though I hated it before). Like Philip K. Dick, end of the world paranoia, reality manipulation, and the religious (specifically Christian) ecstatic vision all merge together in 'The Sacrifice", with a lot more force and clarity(at least for me) than in any of his earlier films.

    The lead character seems like a stand in for Tarkovsky himself, his views on nature, art, God, progress, and humanity, seem to match pretty closely with some he gives in the interview section of the DVD.

    It's still slow as all hell, but the intensity of the story helps balance out the visual pace. It's not as instantly impressive as some of Tarkovsky's other films, but I think this maybe his strongest movie, all around.

    It's the story of a man who saved the world, without anyone ever knowing it, and the trade off, man must make with God, in order to survive. A prayer on film.
  • vince95
    September 24, 2007
    vince95
    tough film to review, as it's tough on the audience. i dunno...it's so philosophical and obscure, that you're just gonna have to try it for yourself. maybe you'll see something that i didn't. sven nykvist was a great DP though.

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Critic Reviews

Walter Goodman
August 30, 2004
Walter Goodman, New York Times

The Sacrifice is a stunningly beautiful film that holds your attention even while you feel slightly stunned, in a less welcome way, by what is actually going on. Full Review

Desson Thomson
January 1, 2000
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

Tarkovsky pulls you into a dark, foreboding nightmare and Nykvist [Bergman's former cameraman] gives that nightmare an explosive awakening. Full Review

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The Sacrifice is not the sort of movie most people will choose to see, but those with the imagination to risk it may find it rewarding. Full Review

Hal Hinson
January 1, 2000
Hal Hinson, Washington Post

It's a paradox: a sublime failure. For all its stunning, poetic imagery, it's almost impossible to sit through. Full Review

Ken Hanke
February 2, 2012
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

At least close to being a great film. It's a film that lingers in the mind -- not in the least because it's so open to interpretation. Full Review

Sean Gandert
August 18, 2011
Sean Gandert, Paste Magazine

The few insecurities in the filmmaking, which stick out in contrast to his Russian works, are easily overlooked by how masterful other scenes are and the impressiveness of the imagery. Full Review

Nick Davis
July 8, 2011
Nick Davis, Nick's Flick Picks

Visually potent ... humblingly vast ... [and yet] the movie oscillates between compelling our thunderstruck confidence and testing our patience with unfulfilled promise and highbrow clichés. Full Review

Jeffrey M. Anderson
January 29, 2009
Jeffrey M. Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

Tarkovsky punctuates this so-called "plot" with many, many stunningly poetic images, mostly filmed in long takes with delicate tracking shots. Full Review

Emanuel Levy
December 31, 2008
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

Tarkovsky's last film, a spiritual meditation about the end of the world and a new beginning, bears resemblance to Ingmar Bergman's work, not least beacuse of its themes and lead actor and cinematogra... Full Review

David Gritten
December 7, 2007
David Gritten, Independent

It's long, stately and po-faced (all reasons why Tarkovsky seems faintly unfashionable these days), but if it's extended, beautifully composed tracking shots you want, he's your man. Full Review

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