Parajanov: The Last Spring

This rarely screened film is an affectionate and moving portrait of filmmaker Sergei Parajanov, made by his good friend Mikhail Vartanov. Like Parajanov’s own films, it is not linear, but depicts the contours of a soul through impressions, colors and symbols.

The film shows Parajanov in 1990 at work on Confession, the deeply personal film he never finished (he died the same year). But we also see him in the 1960s, directing his masterpiece The Color of Pomegranates with sweeping gestures.

In 1974, Parajanov was imprisoned for his criticism of the Soviet regime (the formal charge was homosexuality). From prison, he wrote Vartanov letters, which we hear being read in the film. He also made hundreds of drawings, collages and sculptures. These combine with photographs, archive material and Vartanov’s own footage to form a film that, on the verge of death, celebrates the art, friendship and love in the life of Parajanov. A film in which Vartanov says goodbye to his friend, and his friend says goodbye to life.