Does anyone understand the very last scene of this movie?
After you see all does paintings from Andrei Rublev you can see some horses for a about ten seconds. Why is this scene there? What does Tarkovsky want to say with it? And why is it blurred?
That last shot struck me too but I don't have an answer. Horses obviously feature in various significant contexts in Andrei Rublev. There's also a lot of mirroring going on, it could just be that the final shot conforms to some sort of internal logic of Tarkovsky's by reflecting an earlier shot or event. The opening scene ends on a horse (also by water) rolling about (apparently) joyously. Coming after the hot air balloon sequence in which a man experiences complete and joyous freedom, the first horse might be representative of that joy, the freedom of the human spirit. After we've been subjected to the terrible events of the film it might make some sense for us to be reminded of the strength of the human spirit. Ending on an optimistic note. But that's just a guess, and not a particularly sophisticated one!!
shareThank you for your reply! I think your right. It almost has to be a mirror scene of the first one.
After thinking about it for some time I think it could also somehow be a biblical reference/statement. The horses are probably a symbol for the good creation. And after a lot of suffering in this movie, this last image gives us a glimpse of the good future that will be or that could be someday. Because it is unclear "how" or "if" it will be good again, it is probably blurred.
1 Corinthians 13, 12
For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
Romans 8, 21
Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
Just a thought. But Tarkovsky was a christian (as far as I know) so he knew those famous bible verses...
Animals play a part in this film I feel. The bird with Cyril, his dog, the horses the Tatars are always seen on, the dogs they play with and cause them to fight and so on.
Assuming Direct Control
I read somewhere that horses symbolize LIFE for Tarkovsky. If that's the case then in this context it would probably mean that Rublev's art made him immortal.
Another interpretation of mine would be: FREEDOM. The horses were free unlike other horses in the film I think. That interpretation might translate to for example Rublev being freed from events around him through his art.
Edit: Wikipedia however says:
To Tarkovsky horses symbolized life, and including horses in the final scene (and in many other scenes in the film) meant that life was the source of all of Rublev's art.share
I was baffled by the opening scene in the hot air balloon which was followed by the horse enjoying its freedom and thnx to this thread I think (but who knows) what Tarkovsky was trying to get at. The guy in the balloon was free, flying then was a far more significant symbol of freedom, from all of his earthly cares signified by the people in the boats coming to get him. His fall to earth was maybe a sign that this could only be a temporary state. Unlike the horse who has mastered freedom. Rubilev is freed from his vow of silence and earthbound worries upon hearing the bell just like the horse now in color by the side of the river.
shareNo one knows but it's provocative.
share