Leo Tolstoy's huge, sprawling tale of imperial Russian society--centering on an aristocratic wife/mother undone by her irresistible attraction to a dashing cavalry officer--is transferred reverentially, if rather unimaginatively, to the little screen in this handsome double-disc, four-hour British production. Helen McCrory is solid if not outstanding as the doomed heroine, while Kevin McKidd and Stephen Dillane offer strong support as her lover Count Vronsky and stern husband Alexei, respectively. As usual, the contrasting subplot involving Levin (Douglas Henshall) is given relatively short shrift and the religious elements of the original are skimmed over. Taken overall, however, this 2000 Masterpiece Theatre version of Anna Karenina is probably the finest English-language screen adaptation available: it's certainly preferable to the Hollywood star vehicles for Greta Garbo (1935) and Vivien Leigh (1948), puts the inert 1997 film starring Sophie Marceau in the shade, and comes closer to the mark than either the 1985 American miniseries (which featured Jacqueline Bisset as Anna and the late Christopher Reeve as Vronsky!) or the 1978 effort with Nicola Pagett. Although it remains a pale reflection of the original--i.e., a work of competent craftsmanship standing beside one of artistic genius--and lacks the novel's sweeping scope, this bargain-priced, handsomely letterboxed presentation is recommended. (F. Swietek)
Anna Karenina
WGBH, 2 discs, 240 min., not rated, DVD: $29.98 Volume 20, Issue 1
Anna Karenina
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As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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