I'd risk to suggest that "Andrei Rublev" is Tarkovsky's best film as it is both approachable, auteur, commercial, poetic, symbolic, naturalistic and everything you'd imagine one of the vertebras of the 20th century culture to be.
Yes, late Tarkovsky is great too, but it's not really quite cinema at that point. "Rublev" is The Movie in Tarkovsky's filmography.
It's also probably one of the best medieval films there is, regardless of the genre, "7th Seal" to "Kingdom of Heaven".
Another great, often overlooked movie is his very first one - "Ivan's Childhood". You can see him still begin somewhat cautious there, but the movie is as poignant as they get. It was created by one of the best artists of the generation as he watched the dawn of the 60s era as a member of the society for which World War 2 and Red Terror are yet to become "yesterday".
Yes, late Tarkovsky is great too, but it's not really quite cinema at that point. "Rublev" is The Movie in Tarkovsky's filmography.
It's also probably one of the best medieval films there is, regardless of the genre, "7th Seal" to "Kingdom of Heaven".
Another great, often overlooked movie is his very first one - "Ivan's Childhood". You can see him still begin somewhat cautious there, but the movie is as poignant as they get. It was created by one of the best artists of the generation as he watched the dawn of the 60s era as a member of the society for which World War 2 and Red Terror are yet to become "yesterday".