The original science fiction novel is about the ultimate inadequacy of communication between humans and other species. Tarkovsky's adaptation is a "drama of grief and partial recovery" concentrated upon the thoughts and the consciences of the cosmonaut scientists studying Solaris' mysterious ocean.
In loyalty to the novel's complex and slow-paced narrative, Tarkovsky wanted to bring a new emotional and intellectual depth to the genre, viewing most of western science fiction as shallow. The ideas which Tarkovsky tried to express in this film are further developed in the movie Stalker.
The Plot:
The film is a meditative psychological drama occurring mostly aboard a space station orbiting the fictional planet Solaris. The scientific mission has stalled because the skeleton crew of three scientists have fallen into separate emotional crises. Psychologist Kris Kelvin travels to the Solaris space station to evaluate the situation only to encounter the same mysterious phenomena as the others.