Sayat Nova was an Armenian poet and troubadour who lived in the 18th century. From his Wikipedia page, we gather that he lived as a travelling poet, later became a priest and was finally killed because he refused to convert to Islam on the orders of a Persian general – but The Color of Pomegranates is much more than a dutiful life story; it’s a work of utmost incomprehensibility – more sensual experience than film!
The film’ s unusual form has its reasons: The director Sergei Parajanov designed the film as a reaction to the fate of the Armenians: once a rich culture, they lost much of their country during the genocide by the Ottomans and then lived in oppression by the Soviets. For ideological reasons, the Soviets tried to suppress all religion and folklore in their area of influence, for example by allowing only realistic art. The Color of Pomegranates turns back the clock: Armenian-Christian art is in the center of attention, all realism is sought in vain, and everything seems strange and incomprehensible; it’s surrealistic folklore as an act of resistance!
Written and translated by Carlos Hartmann
