A splendid restored version of Andrey Tarkovsky’s film “The Stalker” (1979) is showing in New York cinemas. It’s a very conceptual film about hope, developed through texture and atmosphere. The setting: a day in a lush, green, but polluted landscape amidst industrial ruin. (Apparently downriver from a chemical factory in Estonia). Unconventional shots and moody music create the psychological tension.

Three men make their way into the Zone, a restricted and deserted area, where normal laws of nature no longer apply. One, an uninspired writer. Another, a scientist in search of a breakthrough. And the third, an unauthorized guide. The writer and the scientist want to visit a room in the Zone that reportedly grants visitors their deepest wish. As the journey progresses, the two travelers and their guide reveal their deeper motivations. The scientist, in fact, wants to blow up the room with a miniature nuclear bomb he is carrying, so that evil people can't reach it.

Beauty in many dimensions, with the a simple set.