Andrei Tarkovsky's The Sacrifice (1986) was the last film the legendary Russian film director ever made. Its focus is on a Swedish actor who spends time with his family after he has retired from acting. By the midpoint of the film, the film's tone becomes more menacing - towards a possible apocalypse.
Tarkovsky's trademark, meditative and philosophical content, is used yet again. Initially the film is about the actor's and his postman's ramblings on existence, but after the plot turn the film becomes an observation of people in despair. The characters enter a nearly surrealistic void that is hard to escape. And the results are rather unexpected. The film's thematics are a fine conclusion to Tarkovsky's filmography because it brings together a lot of his ideas in a gripping way.
With Sven Nykvist as the director of photography, Tarkovsky's camerawork is even more wonderful to look at. The imagery is stunning and thought-provoking (especially in the opening and the ending) and I can guarantee you that the soundtrack is astounding.
Even though The Sacrifice isn't exactly on par with Tarkovsky's best films (such as Stalker and Andrei Rublev), it is still magnificent on its own merits.
Score: 10 out of 10
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