Faust

Freely inspired by Goethe’s story, Alexander Sokurov radically reinterprets the myth. Faust is a thinker, a rebel and a pioneer, but also an anonymous human made of flesh and blood driven by inner impulses, greed and lust. Faust is the last part of Sokurov's tetralogy (four works); follows Molokh (1999), Telets (2001), The Sun (2005).
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A successful scholar is starting to get impatient with the religious limitations imposed on scientific knowledge and is just about ready to sell his soul to the devil for some real enlightenment for a change.

Literary Interest | Identity | German | Adaptation | Religion/Spirituality
Programmer's Note
Reaffirming his hard-won spot in Russia’s mighty filmmaking pantheon, Alexander Sokurov finally wraps up his monumental “Men of Power” tetralogy, kicked off with Moloch in 1999, with this freestyle fantasy version of Faust, loosely based on the famed literary interpretations by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Thomas Mann.

Sokurov’s lavish quartet of idiosyncratic portraits has thus far concentrated on con­tentious or downright infamous historical icons of the twentieth century: Adolph Hitler (Moloch), Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (Taurus) and Emperor Hirohito (The Sun). This new instalment aligns with certain key themes in the series (such as the insidiously cor­rupting effects of power). But by turning to folklore and setting the story in the nine­teenth century, Sokurov’s Faust represents a major departure. Writhing in the grip of enforced ignorance, Faust (Johannes Zeiler) would like nothing better than to cast away the blindfold of religion and swim an ocean of unlimited scientific knowledge. And that’s about the closest this film will ever get to established takes on the German legend.

Filming in numerous beautiful locations throughout the Czech Republic and col­laborating with a wealth of talented actors (including legendary Fassbinder muse Hannah Schygulla), Sokurov opens the door on a world filled with metaphor and visual symbolism, represented by a flow of detailed dialogue expertly painted on a can­vas of characteristically elaborate camera movements. Faust takes us on a fast-paced ride into the absurdity of life itself in the company of an impossible demon who’s ready to satisfy his every wish — for a price, of course. All you have to do is forget everything you thought you knew about the Faustian legend and start fresh. Besides, what is the human soul if not the most uncharted territory of all? Dimitri Eipides
Director's Bio

Alexander Sokurov was born in Podorvikha, Russia, and stud­ied history at Nizhny Novgorod University. Most of his early films were banned by Soviet authorities, though he began to attract global attention with Mournful Unconcern (completed in 83; released in 87). His subsequent work includes Mother and Son (97), Moloch (99), Taurus (01), Russian Ark (02), The Sun (04), Alexandra (07) and Faust (11).