15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
SENSUAL SENSORY SPLENDOR!, July 7, 2009
This review is from: WAR and PEACE (TV-Series) [ Import ] (DVD)
Condensed classic of epic proportions and sensual sensory splendors! This Italian T.V. mini series is studded with an international cast of brilliant players and enough extras to fill the Cinecitta Rome set five times over. One of the fascinating things about this marvelously accessible version of the story is that it (for us in the USA) is in English. Don't let the Russian Box fool you. An extra added bonus it that the film was shot in Russia so you get the added pleasure of seeing some incredible architecture of the period and the stunning Russian countryside (And a little of Lithuania.)
There is in the huge cast some real stand out performances. Brenda Blethyn is wonderful as always, and as Prince Andre's father Malcolm McDowell is chilling and arresting in his approach to the part.
In the lead female role we have the lovely Cemence Posey, who is near perfect in a role so associated in the West with Audrey Hepburn. There have been complaints that she is a blond in a traditionally dark haired part, but that seems trivial to me in comparison to her performance. In the romantic lead of Prince Andre is the wonderful Italian star, Alessio Boni. He brings to the role a deliciously tragic gravitas that is so important to the story. He is a brilliant actor who needs more exposure on this side of the world. Just check out his work in "The Best Of Youth" and "Don't Tell".
Also the incredibly beautiful Violante Placido plays the wicked Helene with relish and great style. Not since Polly Walker in HBO's Rome has there been such a delicious wicked woman on the screen. She was a delight to watch and I found myself missing her when she was not on screen.
Benjamin Sadler (Who was so brilliant in "Augustus" see my amazon review of that film) is on hand to lend his considerable snakey charm and great presence to the role of Dolokov. (Why is this actor not a huge star yet?)
Yes there are many other worthy performances to see and savor in this lush and enthralling film, too many to go any further with here. Rather, take the chance and get this film and let the magic of Tolstoy's timeless story take you into a world that is gone with the wind.
Yes it is not as huge and epic as the 1968 Russian classic but it is none the less even at times more wonderful!
The DVD is splendid with clear beautiful image and great sound. As I said the film is in Enlish with an international cast. It is obvious they are all speaking in English and if any are dubbed that is Not obvious. Very well done in the sound department. And the score by Jan A.P. Kaczmarek is lush and soaring. Most particularly stunning at the end of act two as Natasha descends the grand staircase with the viper Anitole Kuragin (Ken Dunken) on her heals.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
A Disappointment, September 14, 2010
This review is from: WAR and PEACE (TV-Series) [ Import ] (DVD)
I am a Tolstoy aficionado, have read War and Peace more than once. I say this in order to qualify my review. I have also seen all 4 of the major movie productions.
The first production with Audrey Hepburn was a US made piece and is sadly dated, also it is so short that everything is abbreviated.
The second production, by Bondarchuk, is a magnificent production, but I felt somewhat disappointed with it as to me Tolstoy balances the human and world events in such a profound way, and this production seems to focus mainly on the world events. However, some of the battle scenes are like great symphonies and bring deep emotions and tears to the eyes. There is little depth or development of the stories of the characters, however. Platon Karatayev, for example, is barely mentioned and is a pivotal part of the story of Pierre.
My favorite production to this day is the one produced by the BBC with Anthony Hopkins as Pierre. In this 12 hour series a number of very strong characters create an interwoven story which I have watched a number of times. The characters of Pierre, Natasha, Andrei, Princess Maria, The old Prince Bolkonsky, Helene and all the others are so memorable that I would recommend this production as the greatest thus far produced. Although they did not have the resources to produce the battle scenes, costumes and authentic sets, this is after all fiction. And some of the greatest plays are done with virtually nothing but a few props.
It was with great anticipation that I purchased this most recent production directed by Dornhelm, touted at costing 30,000,000.00 and supposedly involved with the personalities of the book.
I was appalled to see that the actual story has been raped and pillaged to abbreviate events leading to the engagement with Andre. I get the feeling that, typical of so many productions of the late 20th and early 21st century, that there was this big budget to be spent and huge resources to be managed, at the cost of a single artist putting together a cogent and cohesive work of art. Although I felt some disappointment at the rather shallow depictions of the characters in the Bondarchuk production, I feel utter anger and contempt that the characters in this present one are so uninteresting and lacking in any depth.
To have a Natasha running around with a schoolgirl crush on Andre, when in the story she only vaguely sees him, not to show the very difficult relationship between the Countess Rostov and her ward Sonia from the beginning, and the reason Sonia is unwanted as a daughter in law, due to the profligacy of the Rostovs financial decisions, good hearted as they are, all make me angry that so much could be wasted on such an insipid production.
This production has been compared to the one of Napoleon, which I have also watched several times, and I can't see any comparison as in that the characters are all riveting, strong actors. Even though it is involved with a lot of historical events and not even a novel, the characters themselves carry this magnificent production.
To me this latest production of War and Peace is like so much of what is wrong with the present era. Everything is superficial, there is no time to get to deep emotion or profundity, it is all frippery, clothes hung on totally forgettable actors and actresses, and visions of a past whose real glory lives only through great works of literature and great art.
I do not recommend wasting any money on this movie. Just read the book and check out the BBC production from your local library!
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13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Atrocious and PREGNANT with Inaccuracies!, March 27, 2010
This review is from: WAR and PEACE (TV-Series) [ Import ] (DVD)
This has to be by far the worst film interpretation of War and Peace! THE WORST! The plot is absurdly muddled. Prince Andrew does not meet Natasha at the beginning of the story at her name day celebration. He resided principally in ST Petersburg and the Rostovs are Moscovite nobility. Natasha did not long and pine for Prince Andrei while he was married to Lise. She only meets him when he comes to Otradnoye to conduct business with her father after becoming a widower. At the grand ball, the music is completely inaccurate and by Khachaturian - composed a century later. And the decor is 90% wrong throughout the film and mostly of styles that existed 50 to 70 yrs later -in short ghastly Victorian hideous monstrosities. The Rostovs, Bezhukovs, Kuragins and Bolkonsky family would have lived in delightful late 18th Century Louis XVI interiors and at the most modish Prince Andrei and Lise would have lived in a Consulat style house as a stylish young menage. Anna Dimitrievna's part is way blown out of proportion and she appears far more in the film and seems to play a much more imposing presence in the film than Tolstoy intended. Then that absurd scene where the Tsar sends Count Rostov (who was hardly in the inner circle at the Imperial Court!) a message about the outbreak of war in 1805 as the Rostovs are celebrating Natasha's name day, is totally delusional and never occurred in Tolstoy's novel. Neither did Countess Helene Bezhukov have any desire to exact any revenge on Natasha. This is another totally delusional moment in the film and totally NOT in the novel. And this laundry list of inaccuracies is just the tip of the iceberg. This film has taken a fascinating story which I have loved since reading it 37 yrs ago at age 13 - and have reread many times since- and made it B-O-R-I-N-G! Pierre is also all wrong too. In Tolstoy's novel, he is clearly Fat and ungainly.
As far as film interpretations go, none is perfect. The 1956 version with Audrey Hepburn is also full of shortcuts and inaccuracies but has more desire to adhere to Tolstoy's narrative and Audrey Hepburn is worth watching as is Mel Ferrer and some of the supporting cast interpretations of characters. In the end, it's also a fun - if rather cheesy 1950's fluffy costume historical film and has a amusing mid century cinema element to it. The BBC version for TV in the early 1970's is excellent - albeit dated. And it does not escape the characteristic - if endearing "Britishisms" of such productions regardless if the story transpires in Russia or France. It's still worth watching. In the end, Sergei Bondarchuk's version is probably the best. Although it is also dated and the decor has some inexcusable inaccuracies in light of the fact that Mosfilm and Bondarchuk had enviable resources at their disposal to recreate early 19th Century aristocratic interiors. Admittedly, Bondarchuk's film is hard to follow if the viewer has not read the book. So read the book and get with the programme! But don't waste you money on this DVD!
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