Parajanov starts here from a short story by Lermontov to go further in his own way, sometimes very far from the original. It's true, both novel and movie end with the same promise for the two lovers (happy together for ever and ever), but along the film Parajanov follows his own instincts and abandons some very important points that are present in Lermontov's story.
Actually the story is in the film only a pretext. Well, in all the great movies of Parajanov, starting with the Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, the story is more a pretext for the master to immerse in a traditions' universe and to enjoy there the view. But here in Ashik Kerib, even the traditions' universe becomes a pretext! The master simply plays with all kind of artistic genres from all kind of traditions' universes, to see how they fit. All kind of treats or tricks, that may leave you in total perplexity. At a certain moment it's like you attend a Kabuki theatre. Some other times you seem to visit an exhibition of Azeri or Persian art. It all seems gratuitous, only to see at the end that Ashik Kerib is dedicated to the beloved memory of Tarkovsky: a dedication like a joyous present.
Actually the story is in the film only a pretext. Well, in all the great movies of Parajanov, starting with the Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, the story is more a pretext for the master to immerse in a traditions' universe and to enjoy there the view. But here in Ashik Kerib, even the traditions' universe becomes a pretext! The master simply plays with all kind of artistic genres from all kind of traditions' universes, to see how they fit. All kind of treats or tricks, that may leave you in total perplexity. At a certain moment it's like you attend a Kabuki theatre. Some other times you seem to visit an exhibition of Azeri or Persian art. It all seems gratuitous, only to see at the end that Ashik Kerib is dedicated to the beloved memory of Tarkovsky: a dedication like a joyous present.