10 Mysterious Sci-Fi Films That Gave Nothing Away

Solaris is a 1972 sci-fi drama directed by renowned Russian filmmaker, Andrei Tarkovsky. (By the way, that is not the last time you will see his name on this list.) The story begins with a psychologist called Kelvin being sent to a space station to take the place of a recently deceased crew member. As he arrives and encounters the other two cosmonauts, he learns the station is orbiting a celestial body called Solaris which manifest memories into reality. When Solaris resurrects Kelvin's deceased wife, he questions how real she is and the consequences of trying to have a life with her.

Most mind-bending films rely on visuals rather than heavy dialogue, which can confuse and irritate viewers. However, Tarkovsky's work isn't like this. His movies are usually very long and contain lots of exposition-filled dialogue, and yet they are still bewildering and misunderstood. Tarkovsky doesn't want viewers to focus on how the Solaris planet works but to ponder the uncertainty of life and the inevitability of death. This can be a problem since viewers usually wants answers while the film only offers questions.