Question by : How faithful is Sergei Bondarchuk’s film ‘War and Peace’ to Tolstoy’s magnum opus?
I’ve read ‘War and Peace’ and am a bit worried I’ll be disappointed.
I’ve seen the original Russian version of ‘Anna Karenina’ and felt betrayed, honestly.
If you’ve seen this epic film, did you like it?
Do you think it’s worth seeing?
Answers and Views:
Answer by Blonde A
it’s very good movie, but if you were disappointed by “Anna Karenina” (1967) then you probably shouldn’t watch movies based on classics… movie is movie, book is book. though, if i were you, i would give it a try.
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K2010 says
Yes to both
The original movie (1965) is worth watching
Now, we all know all adaptations are not mirroring books. but it was close.
Slava T says
You have to keep in mind that a SOVIET film director Bondarchuk and a RUSSIAN writer Count Lev Tolstoy are two persons from two different universes. From cultural point of view Bondarchuk’s film (as it always the case with the Soviet adaptation of the Russian classic literature) is an attempt to combine two extremely hostile to each other cultural paradigms. This cultural dissonance might be the reason why you didn’t like the Soviet adaptation of “Anna Karenina”. In the end any historical film is not about costumes, language and modern interpretation of old rituals but above all about the SPIRIT of the time, IDEAS of the time, CULTURAL trends of the time.
Wave2012 says
Probably you do not understand 100% feelings of the people from these books and their background. Both movies are excellent because they show exactly the same feelings as they give Russians when they read Anna Karenina and War and Peace. And they are not just empty love stories but show philosophy of Tolstoy.
I’m afraid you will be disappointed with War and peace of 1967 too. Better watch modern versions, they are mostly concentrated on love stories rather than philosophy.