The Color of Pomegranates

(1969) dir Sergei Parajanov w/Sofiko Chiaureli [78 min; DCP]

A breathtaking fusion of poetry, ethnography, and cinema, Sergei Parajanov’s masterwork overflows with unforgettable images and sounds. In a series of tableaux that blend the tactile with the abstract, THE COLOR OF POMEGRANATES revives the splendors of Armenian culture through the story of the eighteenth- century troubadour Sayat-Nova, charting his intellectual, artistic, and spiritual growth through iconographic compositions rather than traditional narrative. The film’s tapestry of folklore and metaphor departed from the realism that dominated the Soviet cinema of its era, leading authorities to block its distribution, with rare underground screenings presenting it in a restructured form. This recent restoration, featuring the cut closest to Parajanov’s original vision, brings new life to one of cinema’s most enigmatic meditations on art and beauty. – Janus Films